Human violence directed towards other humans causes much harm to individuals, families and friends of victims, communities and whole societies. Despite that harm, violence has a widespread allure. Focusing on murder, the ‘devastation-fascination paradox’ and its relevance to mental health practice is explored in this article. In particular, attention is drawn towards implications for child and adolescent services. Also discussed is the ‘social responsibility’ of all mental health professionals to tackle the problem of violence.