However, it was clear that this group came from a perspective of assuming people in need disproportionately cheat the system.  The questions became more and more targeted and negative. 

My point in writing about this incident is not to discuss how I handled this situation.  Instead it's to clarify that low income people are just like other groups of people:  not identical clones, but unique individuals with their own personalities, stories and history.

Some are Type A, some are laid back, some are angry, some are humble, some are depressed, some take short-cuts, some are workaholics, etc…  Because all systems are comprised of people, you will always have some who follow the system and some who try to get around it.  In this regard, the poor are no different than any other group of people.