Here's something you hopefully already know: CSI: Miami is not actually a very reliable representation of reality. No, and it's not just because the Miami-set drama is actually filmed in Southern California.
The Mayo Clinic analyzed date from CSI: Miami and its parent show CSI and compared them to actual violent death statistics from the CDC. Basically CSI: Miami makes you think non-drunk strangers are going to kill you, while in reality a drunk associate of yours is more likely to wield the knife:
When researchers compared the shows to the CDC data, they discovered the strongest misrepresentations were related to alcohol use, relationships, and race among perpetrators and victims. Previous studies of actual statistics have shown that both perpetrator and victim were often under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs when the crime occurred, differing from what the shows portrayed. Also, CSI and CSI: Miami were more likely to have described the victim and the attacker as Caucasian, which is misrepresentative. Finally, according to the CDC data, homicide victims typically knew their assailant; however, the television series were more likely to have portrayed the perpetrator as a stranger. All of these findings were significantly different when compared to the data.
