In the study “Profile of Intimate Partner Violence Cases in Large Urban Counties” undertaken in 2009 by the U.S. Department of Justice, just over 50 percent of the assaults took place between boyfriend and girlfriend, a trend which it seems has continued to grow over the years as the rate of married couples continues to drop in the country.
One third of those abused were the spouse of the abuser, while 15.5 percent were “non-intimate” family members such as parents (3.1 percent), children (6.2 percent), siblings .(3.5 percent) or some other family member (2.7 percent). Just over 1 percent of victims had no intimate or family connection with the abuser.
It is not unexpected, as the data shows, women are the overwhelming victims of abuse, though female on male assault does take place.
Domestic Violence by the Numbers
- 86 percent of domestic violence victims are female
- 14 percent are male
- 37.1 percent are white, non–Hispanic
- 26.4 percent are black, non-Hispanic
- 33.6 percent are Hispanic
- 2.8 percent other
Abusers Demographics
When it comes to the age group in which the assaults take place, it is those from 25 – 54 years of age that commit the greatest number of offenses, at 34 percent of the total crimes being committed. Those between the ages of 18 and 24 were responsible for 26.1 percent of the assaults and for those under 17 and above 55, the incidence drops to between 2.7 and 2.3 percent respectively.
Same Abuser, Same Victim
One disturbing trend that was found in the study was that nearly half, 46 percent of those charged with domestic violence, had a prior history of abuse of the same victim. As disturbing as this statistic was, those who had abused the same individual in the past, had a higher than average rate of conviction when they went to trial.
Of those defendants who faced trial on domestic abuse charges, nearly 50 percent were convicted. Of this group, 80 percent were sentence to time in jail or prison, depending upon the severity of the charges they faced.
Domestic Abusers Charged
For the most part, abusers were overwhelmingly charged with misdemeanors such as simple assault, at 77.9 percent. A relatively small number of offenders were charged with more serious crimes such as aggravated assault (12.2 percent), intimidation (4.9 percent) and other violent crimes against the victim. Rape and sexual assault made up 1.7 percent of the charges against abusers and the most extreme level of violence, murder, was charged in 0.2 percent of the cases.
Finding Help
As efforts are driven forward to combat domestic violence, more and more help is becoming available for its victims.
One such organization, National Domestic Violence Hotline provides access to information on their website for those seeking help. The group also operates a toll free hot line 24–hours a day, seven days a week for those without access to the internet or for those who are in immediate need.
But it is stressed by the NDVH and the U.S. Department of Justice that if an individual feels threatened they should immediately call 911 for help.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline telephone number is 1.800.799.SAFE (7233) 1.800.787.3224 (TTY). All calls are confidential and the person calling can remain anonymous.
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