Domestic Violence Facts
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IS SERIOUS PROBLEM HERE IN THE DISTRICT.
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Research indicates that 1 out of 4 women will experience domestic violence at some point in their lives, which means
that there may be approximately 75,000 domestic violence victims in the District.
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One fourth of the Districts female population is likely to experience domestic violence at some point in their lives. This
figure is approximately 60% higher than the number of reported domestic-related calls to the Metropolitan Police
Department in 2006.
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In the District, where victim-offender relationships could be established from 2002 to 2004, the Metropolitan Police
Department (MDP) reported that there were 51 murders attributed to domestic/family violence: on average, one
homicide victim every two weeks.
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In 2006, the MPD received over 29,000 domestic-related crime calls: one every 19 minutes. In 2007, the number of
domestic-related crime calls increased to over 31,000—one call every 17 minutes.
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Teens in the District experence dating violence at one of the highest rates in the nation.
[Sources: See citations below]
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IS MOST OFTEN A CRIME AGAINST WOMEN.
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Although men are more likely to be victims of violent crime overall, a recent study by the U.S. Department of Justice
reports that "intimate partner violence is primarily a crime against women."
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Of those victimized by an intimate partner, 85% are women and 15% are men.2 In other words, women are 5 to 8
times more likely than men to be victimized by an intimate partner.
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The vast majority of domestic assaults are committed by men. Even when men are victimized, 10% are assaulted by
another man. In contrast, only 2% of women who are victimized are assaulted by another woman.
For more information please visit www.dccadv.org and www.stopdvindc.org or call 202-299-1181
ALTHOUGH DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AFFECTS ALL WOMEN, NOT ALL WOMEN EXPERIENCE THE SAME RATE OF
ABUSE.
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Women age 16 to 24 are most likely to be victimized by an intimate partner.
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African-American women experience more domestic violence than White women in the age group of 20-24.
However, Black and White women experience the same level of victimization in all other age categories.
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Hispanic women are less likely to be victimized than non-Hispanic women in every age group.
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Women are most vulnerable to violence when separated from their intimate partner. The second most vulnerable
group are those who are divorced. This can discourage women from leaving their abusive partner, out of fear that it
will increase their risk of victimization.
PHYSICAL INJURY OFTEN RESULTS FROM DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND IS LARGELY UNREPORTED.
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Approximately 40-50% of female victims are physically injured when assaulted by their intimate partner, accounting
for over 200,000 visits to the hospital emergency room each year.
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Only about 1 in 5 of domestic violence victims with physical injuries seek professional medical treatment.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IS UNDER-REPORTED TO THE POLICE.
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Only about half of domestic violence incidents are reported to police. African-American women are more
likely than others to report their victimization to police.
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The most common reasons for not reporting domestic violence to police are that victims view the incident
as a personal or private matter, they fear retaliation from their abuser, and they do not believe that police
will do anything about the incident.
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Even with this dramatic under-reporting, domestic violence calls constitute approximately half of all violent
crime calls to police departments. For example, 49% of the violent crime calls received by the DC
Metropolitan Police Department in 2000 were for domestic violence incidents.
For more information please visit www.dccadv.org and www.stopdvindc.org or call 202-299-1181
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE MURDERS HAPPEN MOST OFTEN TO WOMEN.
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Women are far more likely than men to be murdered by an intimate partner. Of those murdered by their intimate
partner, 74% are women and 26% are men. In other words, nearly 3 out of 4 of the murders committed by intimate
partners have a female victim.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE WHERE BOTH PARTNERS ARE ABUSIVE HURTS MEN AS MUCH AS IT HURTS
WOMEN (The Myth of "Mutuality").
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Although many studies report that men and women use physical violence at equal rates within intimate
relationships, this fails to take into account the nature of the violence and the level of fear and injury
experienced by each party.
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Several studies document that women experience higher levels of fear than men do in domestic violence
situations. This is perhaps because women in domestic violence situations are much more likely to be
injured -- and injured severely -- than men are.
[Sources: See the Feminist Majority Foundation fact sheet: http://feminist.org/other/dv/dvfact.html]
SOURCES:
Tjaden, P. & Thoennes, N. National Institute of Justice and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Extent, Nature, and
Consequences of Intimate Partner Violence, (2000).
Government of the District of Columbia, Facts and Statistics About DC, http://about.dc.gov/facts.asp.
This figure does not account for the percentage of males that may also be victims of domestic violence.
Metropolitan Police Department (2007). Domestic Violence Report for MPD 2006 & 2007, Washington, DC: Author.
Metropolitan Police Department-- UCR Report, 2005; A Report on Homicide in the District of Columbia 2001-2004; A Report on Juvenile
Homicide 2002-2004
Metropolitan Police Department, 2004-2006; US Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2005-2006
Metropolitan Police Department (2007). Domestic Violence Report for MPD 2006 & 2007, Washington, DC: Author.
For more information please visit www.dccadv.org and www.stopdvindc.org or call 202-299-1181