Domestic Violence Statistics

1 in 4 women and 1 in 6 men will experience domestic violence over their lifetimes. (Council of Europe, 2002; BMA 1998; Home Office Research Study, 1999)
An average of 2 women each week were killed by current or former partners in England in Wales in the year 2000/1.
(Home Office, 2001)
It's estimated that police receive a call from a victim of domestic violence every minute.
(Betsy Stanko, 2000).
Domestic violence incidents make up nearly a quarter of all violent crime.
(Crime in England and Wales, Home Office, July 2002).
Less than 35% of actual domestic violence is reported to the police. Some surveys put it as low as 11%.
(Crime in England and Wales, Home Office, July 2002; Home Office Research Study, 1999)
Just under half of victims will tell a relative or friend.
(Home Office Research Study, 1999)
In a 3 month period 128 of 180 victims of domestic violence were unwilling to pursue the allegation.
(Metropolitan Police Research 'Understanding and Responding to Hate Crime' team)
Out of an estimated 635,000 incidents of domestic violence in 2001/2 in England and Wales - 81% of the victims were women and 19% were men.
(Crime in England and Wales, Home Office, July 2002)
There are no significant differences between ethnic groups. Under-25s are most likely to be affected.
(Crime in England and Wales, Home Office, July 2002)
In a study of the take-up of services by Asian, African Caribbean and Arab women it was found that about half the women who had experienced domestic violence waited 5 years before they sought help.
(Rai and Thiara, 1997)
Academic research has estimated the cost of domestic violence in Hackney in 1996 at Ł90 per household - equivalent to an estimated Ł278 million a year for Greater London alone.
(Professor Betsy Stanko, 1999)
There are children (16 years or under) in half of the households where there is domestic violence.
(1999 Home Office study)
It is estimated that between 1 third and 2 thirds of children in homes where the mother is being abused are also at risk of being abused.
(Home Office, 2000)
A 2000 survey of 1300 schoolchildren found that 1 in 3 boys thought violence against women was acceptable.
(Survey by Zero Tolerance Charitable Trust)

American Statistics

The National Domestic Violence Hotline has received more than 1,000,000 calls for assistance since February 1996. - National Domestic Violence Hotline, December 2004
Nearly one-third of American women (31 percent) report being physically or sexually abused by a husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives. -Commonwealth Fund survey, 1998
It is estimated that 503,485 women are stalked by an intimate partner each year in the United States. - National Institute of Justice, July 2000
Estimates range from 960,000 incidents of violence against a current or former spouse, boyfriend, or girlfriend each year to 4 million women who are physically abused by their husbands or live-in partners each year. - Violence by Intimates: Analysis of Data on Crimes by Current or Former Spouses, Boyfriends, and Girlfriends, U.S. Department of Justice, March, 1998
Studies show that child abuse occurs in 30-60% of family violence cases that involve families with children. - "The overlap between child maltreatment and woman battering." J.L. Edleson, Violence Against Women, February, 1999
While women are less likely than men to be victims of violent crimes overall, women are 5 to 8 times more likely than men to be victimized by an intimate partner. - Violence by Intimates: Analysis of Data on Crimes by Current or Former Spouses, Boyfriends, and Girlfriends, U.S. Department of Justice, March, 1998
Violence by an intimate partner accounts for about 21% of violent crime experienced by women and about 2 % of the violence experienced by men. - Violence by Intimates: Analysis of Data on Crimes by Current or Former Spouses, Boyfriends, and Girlfriends, U.S. Department of Justice, March, 1998
In 92% of all domestic violence incidents, crimes are committed by men against women. - Violence Against Women, Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice, January, 1994
Of women who reported being raped and/or physically assaulted since the age of 18, three quarters (76 percent) were victimized by a current or former husband, cohabitating partner, date or boyfriend. - Prevalence Incidence, and Consequences of Violence Against Women: Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey, U.S. Department of Justice, November, 1998
In 1994, women separated from their spouses had a victimization rate 1 1/2 times higher than separated men, divorced men, or divorced women. - Sex Differences in Violent Victimization, 1994, U.S. Department of Justice, September, 1997
In 1996, among all female murder victims in the U.S., 30% were slain by their husbands or boyfriends. - Uniform Crime Reports of the U.S. 1996, Federal Bureau of Investigation, 1996
31,260 women were murdered by an intimate partner from 1976-1996. - Violence by Intimates: Analysis of Data on Crimes by Current or Former Spouses, Boyfriends, and Girlfriends, U.S. Department of Justice, March, 1998
A child's exposure to the father abusing the mother is the strongest risk factor for transmitting violent behavior from one generation to the next. - Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family, APA, 1996
Forty percent of teenage girls age 14 to 17 report knowing someone their age who has been hit or beaten by a boyfriend. - Children Now/Kaiser Permanente poll, December, 1995
Females accounted for 39% of the hospital emergency department visits for violence-related injuries in 1994 but 84% of the persons treated for injuries inflicted by intimates.- Violence by Intimates: Analysis of Data on Crimes by Current or Former Spouses, Boyfriends, and Girlfriends, U.S. Department of Justice, March, 1998
Family violence costs the nation from $5 to $10 billion annually in medical expenses, police and court costs, shelters and foster care, sick leave, absenteeism, and non-productivity. - Medical News, American Medical Association, January, 1992
Husbands and boyfriends commit 13,000 acts of violence against women in the workplace every year.- Violence and Theft in the Workplace, U.S. Department of Justice, July, 1994
The majority of welfare recipients have experienced domestic abuse in their adult lives and a high percentage are currently abused. - Trapped by Poverty, Trapped by Abuse: New Evidence Documenting the Relationship Between Domestic Violence and Welfare, The Taylor Institute, April, 1997
One in five female high school students reports being physically or sexually abused by a dating partner. - Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), August 2001
Nearly 1 in 3 adult women experience at least one physical assault by a partner during adulthood.- American Psychl. Ass'n, Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 10.
28% of all annual violence against women is perpetrated by intimates. -Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: National Crime Victimization Survey, Violence Against Women (NCJ-145325), January 1994.
5% of all annual violence against men is perpetrated by intimates. -Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: National Crime Victimization Survey, Violence Against Women (NCJ-145325), January 1994.
In 1993, approximately 575,000 men were arrested for committing violence against women. approximately 49,000 women were arrested for committing violence against men. -American Psychl. Ass'n, Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 10.
Women ages 19-29 reported more violence by intimates than any other age group. -Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey (NCJ-154348), August 1995, p. 4.
Women aged 46 or older are least likely to be battered by an intimate. -Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey (NCJ-154348), August 1995, p. 4.
In a 1990 restraining order study, the age of abusers ranged from 17 - 70. Two-thirds of the abusers were between the ages 24 and 40. -Buzawa & Buzawa ed., Do Arrests and Restraining Orders Work? (1996), p.195.
Male perpetrators are 4 times more likely to use lethal violence than females. -Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, p.44, table 7.
During the six months following an episode of domestic violence, 32% of battered women are victimized again. -Bureau of Justice Statistics: Preventing Domestic Violence Against Women, 1986.
47% of men who beat their wives do so at least 3 times per year. -AMA Diagnostic & Treatment Guidelines on Domestic Violence, SEC: 94-677:3M:9/94 (1994).
Short term (6-12 week) psycho-educational batterer-intervention programs helped some batterers stop immediate physical violence but were inadequate in stopping abuse over time. Some batterers became more sophisticated in their psychological abuse and intimidation after attending such programs. -American Psychl. Ass'n, Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 85.
Six months after obtaining a protection order: 8% of victims reported post-order physical abuse; 26% reported respondent came to or called their home or workplace; 65% reported no further problems. -CPOs: the Benefits and Limitations for Victims of Domestic Violence, National Center for State Courts Research Report, 1997.
Each year, an estimated 3.3 million children are exposed to violence by family members against their mothers or female caretakers. -American Psychl. Ass'n, Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 11.
40-60% of men who abuse women also abuse children. -American Psychl. Ass'n, Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 80.
Fathers who batter mothers are 2 times more likely to seek sole physical custody of their children than are non-violent fathers. -American Psychl. Ass'n, Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 40.
In one study, 27% of domestic homicide victims were children. -Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, p. 45, table 11.
When children are killed during a domestic dispute, 90% are under age 10; 56% are under age 2. -Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, p.51, table 28.
Violence against women occurs in 20% of dating couples. -American Psychl. Ass'n, Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 10.
26% of pregnant teens reported being physically abused by their boyfriends. About half of them said the battering began or intensified after he learned of her pregnancy. -Brustin, S., Legal Response to Teen Dating Violence, Family Law Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 2, 333-334 (Summer 1995) (citing Worcester, A More Hidden Crime: Adolescent Battered Women, The Network News, July/Aug., national Women's Health Network 1993).
25 - 33% of adolescent abusers reported that their violence served to "intimidate," frighten," or "force the other person to give me something." -Brustin, S., Legal Response to Teen Dating Violence, Family Law Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 2, 335 (Summer 1995).
Female victims of violence are 2.5 times more likely to be injured when the violence is committed by an intimate than when committed by a stranger. -Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey (NCJ-154348), August 1995, p. 4.
One study found that less than 3% of women visiting emergency rooms disclosed or were asked about domestic violence by a nurse or physician. -Abbott et al., Domestic Violence Against Women: Incidence and Prevalence in an Emergency Department Population, Journal of the American Medical Association, vol. 273, no. 22, 1763, 1765 (June 1995).
The use of emergency room protocols for identifying and treating victims of domestic violence has been found to increase the identification of victims by medical practitioners from 5.6% to 30%. -Children's Safety Network, Domestic Violence: A Directory of Protocols for Health Care Providers (1992) p. (I).
17% of those who visit emergency rooms for treatment are documented as having come as a result of being injured by an intimate. -Bureau of Justice Statistics: Violence-Related Injuries Treated in Hospital Emergency Departments (NCJ-156921), August 1997. p. 5.
243,000 people receiving emergency room treatment for violence-related injuries in 1994 had been injured by an intimate. -Bureau of Justice Statistics: Violence-Related Injuries Treated in Hospital Emergency Departments (NCJ-156921), August 1997. p. 5.
One study of women visiting emergency rooms for treatment found that 54% had been threatened or injured by an intimate partner at some time in their lives, and 24% reported having been injured by their current partner in the past. -Abbott et al., Domestic Violence Against Women: Incidence and Prevalence in an Emergency Department Population, Journal of the American Medical Association, vol. 273, no. 22, 1763, 1765 (June 1995).
Only about one-seventh of all domestic assaults come to the attention of the police. -Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, p. 3.
Female victims of domestic violence are 6 times less likely to report crime to law enforcement as female victims of stranger violence. -American Psychl. Ass'n, Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 10.
The varying effect of arrest on abusers may be related to the amount the batterer has to lose from facing the social consequences of arrest. The single most consistent result of studies of the effect of arrest on batterers is that unemployed suspects become more violent after an arrest, and employed suspects do not. -Buzawa & Buzawa ed., Do Arrests and Restraining Orders Work? pp. 48-49 (1996).
More than 17% of domestic homicide victims had a protection order against the perpetrator at the time of the killing. -Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, p.46, table 15.
In one study, nearly half of the victims who obtained a protection order were re-abused within two years. -Buzawa & Buzawa ed., Do Arrests and Restraining Orders Work? p. 10 (1996).
Most violations of protection orders leading to an arrest occurred within 90 days of the entry of the order. -Buzawa & Buzawa ed., Do Arrests and Restraining Orders Work? p. 200 (1996).
60% of those obtaining protection orders in one study reported violations within one year. -Buzawa & Buzawa ed., Do Arrests and Restraining Orders Work? p. 240 (1996).
65% of intimate homicide victims physically separated from the perpetrator prior to their death. -Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, p.47, table 17.
88% of victims of domestic violence fatalities had a documented history of physical abuse. -Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, pp.46-48, tables 14-21.
In 1994, 38% of domestic homicides were multiple-victim, usually combining a spouse homicide and suicide, or child homicide. -Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, p.45, table 12.
Where there are multiple victims in a domestic homicide, 89% of perpetrators are male. -Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, p.52, table 29.

Domestic Violence In Same Sex Couples

The prevalence of domestic violence among Gay and Lesbian couples is approximately 25 - 33%. -Barnes, It's Just a Quarrel', American Bar Association Journal, February 1998, p. 25.
Each year, between 50,000 and 100,000 Lesbian women and as many as 500,000 Gay men are battered. -Murphy, Queer Justice: Equal Protection for Victims of Same-Sex Domestic Violence, 30 Val. U. L. Rev. 335 (1995).
While same-sex battering mirrors heterosexual battering both in type and prevalence, its victims receive fewer protections. -Barnes, It's Just a Quarrel', American Bar Association Journal, February 1998, p. 24.
Seven states define domestic violence in a way that excludes same-sex victims; 21 states have sodomy laws that may require same-sex victims to confess to a crime in order to prove they are in a domestic relationship. -Barnes, It's Just a Quarrel', American Bar Association Journal, February 1998, p. 24.
By 1994, there were over 1,500 shelters and safe houses for battered women. many of these shelters routinely deny their services to victims of same-sex battering. -Murphy, Queer Justice: Equal Protection for Victims of Same-Sex Domestic Violence, 30 Val. U. L. Rev. 335 (1995).
While same-sex batterers use forms of abuse similar to those of heterosexual batterers, they have an additional weapon in the threat of "outing" their partner to family, friends, employers or community. -Lundy, Abuse That Dare Not Speak Its Name: Assisting Victims of Lesbian and Gay Domestic Violence in Massachusetts, 28 New Eng. L. Rev. 273 (Winter 1993).

Domestic Violence and Imigrant Women

Domestic violence is thought to be more prevalent among immigrant women than among U.S. citizens. -Anderson, A License to Abuse: The Impact of Conditional Status on Female Immigrants, 102 Yale L. J. 1401 (April 1993).

Immigrant women may suffer higher rates of battering than U.S. citizens because they come from cultures which accept domestic violence, or because they have less access to legal and social services than U.S. citizens.Iin addition, immigrant batterers and victims may believe that the penalties and protections of the U.S. legal system do not apply to them. -Orloff et al., With No Place to Turn: Improving Advocacy for Battered Immigrant Women, Family Law Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 2, 313 (Summer 1995).

A battered woman who is not a legal resident, or whose immigration status depends on her partner, is isolated by cultural dynamics which may prevent her from leaving her husband or seeking assistance from the legal system. These factors contribute to the higher incidence of abuse among immigrant women. -Orloff et al., With No Place to Turn: Improving Advocacy for Battered Immigrant Women, Family Law Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 2, 313 (Summer 1995).

Some obstacles faced by battered immigrant women include: a distrust of the legal system arising from their experiences with the system in their native countries; cultural and language barriers; and fear of deportation. -Orloff et al., With No Place to Turn: Improving Advocacy for Battered Immigrant Women, Family Law Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 2, 313 (Summer 1995).

Undocumented women may be reported to Immigration and Naturalization Services by law enforcement or social services personnel from whom they may seek assistance. -Jang, Caught in a Web: Immigrant Women and Domestic Violence, National Clearinghouse (Special Issue 1994), p. 397-399.

A battered immigrant woman is often trapped in an abusive relationship by economics. She may have legal or practical impediments to obtaining employment or public assistance. -Jang, Caught in a Web: Immigrant Women and Domestic Violence, National Clearinghouse (Special Issue 1994), p. 403.

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