Results revealed that the profile of British homicidal juveniles was similar to that in the United States in that the majority were male and came from disturbed family backgrounds. However, significantly more homicidal juveniles than firesetters were male and had a history of frequent changes of schools, alcohol abuse, and alcohol intoxication at the time of the offense. In contrast, significantly fewer of the homicidal juveniles than firesetters had psychotic illness and were known to professional services before referral to the forensic psychiatry service. In addition, a discriminant analysis revealed that a history of psychosis, being in care, alcohol intoxication at the material time, and prior psychology contact were the most significant variables predicting group membership for homicidal and firesetting delinquents. Moreover, abused homicidal youths did not differ markedly from those who did not experience abuse, but they came from families with higher rates of paternal psychopathology. The analysis concluded that British juvenile offenders who commit homicide come, as do other juvenile delinquents, from disturbed and chaotic family backgrounds and that prevention efforts need to focus on issues such as quality of parenting and alcohol abuse. 31 references (Author abstract modified)