Homegrown radicals are deadlier than Muslim jihadis in the U.S., study finds

Since September 11, 2001, nearly twice as many people have been killed in the U.S. by white supremacists, antigovernment fanatics, or other non-Muslim extremists than by Muslim terrorists, a count by New America finds. Forty-eight people have been killed by non-Muslim extremists, as compared to 26 murdered by jihadis.

"There's an acceptance now of the idea that the threat from jihadi terrorism in the United States has been overblown," Dr. John Horgan, who studies terrorism at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell, told The New York Times. "And there's a belief that the threat of right-wing, antigovernment violence has been underestimated."

Indeed, the misconception doesn't seem to be held by the police. When researchers asked 382 police and sheriff's departments nationwide to rank the three biggest threats of extremist violence in their jurisdictions, 74 percent listed antigovernment violence, while only 39 percent listed "al Qaeda-inspired" attacks.

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The 2015 Charleston church shooting, which left nine people dead, is listed by New America as the deadliest right-wing attack since 2001.