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Intimate Partner Violence in the U.S.
Circumstances
Type of crime | Time | Place | Alcohol and drugs | Presence of weapons | Location of residence (urban, suburban, rural)
Type of crime
For nonfatal intimate partner violence, as for violent crime in general, simple assault is the most common type of violent crime.
The long term trend for female victims of nonfatal intimate partner violence shows that between 1993 and 2005 —
- the rate of simple assault declined by about two-thirds.
- the rate of aggravated assault declined by two-thirds.
To view data, click on the chart.
[D]
On average between 2001 and 2005, females experienced higher rates of nonfatal intimate partner violence than males in each type of crime.
To view data, click on the chart.
[D]
See Intimate
homicides in Homicide Trends in the U.S.
Time
Nonfatal intimate partner violence is more likely to occur between the hours of 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.
- Females and males experienced nonfatal intimate partner victimization at similar times during the day and night.
| Average annual | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Percent | |||
| Female victims | ||||
| Daytime (6 a.m. to 6 p.m.) | 192,425 | 37.7 | % | |
| Nighttime (6 p.m. to 6 a.m.) | 302,485 | 59.2 | ||
| Don't know | 10,775 | 2.1 | ||
| Male victims | ||||
| Daytime (6 a.m. to 6 p.m.) | 38,360 | 36.6 | % | |
| Nighttime (6 p.m. to 6 a.m.) | 62,070 | 59.2 | ||
| Don't know | 4,390 | 4.2 | ||
| Note: Detail may not add to total due to rounding. | ||||
Place
On average between 2001 and 2005 —
- the majority of nonfatal intimate partner victimizations occurred at
home; approximately two-thirds of females and males were victimized at
home.
- about 11% of female and 10% of male victims of nonfatal intimate partner
violence were victimized at a friend's or neighbor's home.
| Average annual | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Percent | |||
| Female victims | 510,970 | 100 | % | |
| Victim's home | 319,945 | 62.6 | ||
| Near victim's home | 48,075 | 9.4 | ||
| Friend/neighbor's home | 56,920 | 11.1 | ||
| Commercial place | 17,305 | 3.4 | ||
| Parking lot or garage | 21,535 | 4.2 | ||
| School | 9,750 | 1.9 | ||
| Open area/street/public place | 23,575 | 4.6 | ||
| Other | 13,870 | 2.7 | ||
| Male victims | 104,820 | 100 | % | |
| Victim's home | 63,075 | 60.2 | ||
| Near victim's home | 9,915 | 9.5 | ||
| Friend/neighbor's home | 10,660 | 10.2 | ||
| Commercial place | 6,245 | 6 | ||
| Parking lot or garage | 4,295 | 4.1 | ||
| School | 570 | 0.5 | * | |
| Open area/street/public place | 4,730 | 4.5 | ||
| Other | 5,330 | 5.1 | ||
| *Based on 10 or fewer sample cases. |
||||
Alcohol and drugs
On average between 2001 and 2005 —
- the presence of any alcohol or drugs was reported by victims in about
42% of all nonfatal intimate partner violence.
- victims reported that approximately 8% of all nonfatal intimate partner
victimizations occurred when a perpetrator was under the influence of
both alcohol and drugs.
- female and male victims of nonfatal intimate partner violence were equally likely to report the presence of alcohol during their victimization.
- female and male victims of nonfatal intimate partner violence both reported their attacker was under the influence of drugs in about 6% of all victimizations.
To view data, click on the chart.
Note: Responses are based on perception of victim as to whether offender used alcohol or drugs.
Presence of weapons
On average between 2001 and 2005, for nonfatal intimate partner violence —
- male victims were more likely than female victims to face an offender armed with a weapon.
- female victims were more likely than male victims to face an offender armed with a firearm.
- about 6% of female and 10% of male victims faced an offender armed with a sharp weapon, such as a knife.
| Average annual number and percent of weapons used in nonfatal intimate partner violence | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female | Male | |||||||
| Number | Percent | Number | Percent | |||||
| Total intimate partner victims | 510,970 | 100 | % | 104,820 | 100 | % | ||
| No weapon present | 411,140 | 80.5 | 71,825 | 68.5 | ||||
| Weapon present | 79,715 | 15.6 | 29,430 | 28.1 | ||||
| Firearm | 18,485 | 3.6 | 515 | 0.5 | ||||
| Sharp weapon | 28,625 | 5.6 | 10,350 | 9.9 | ||||
| Blunt objects | 32,605 | 6.4 | 18,560 | 17.7 | ||||
| Do not know if offender had weapon |
20,120 | 3.9 | 3,565 | 3.4 | ||||
| Note: The firearms category includes handguns, other guns, and incidents where the gun type was unknown. Sharp objects include knives and any other sharp objects. Blunt objects include other weapon types and those classified as a blunt object. The "other" weapon category refers to items not generally considered weapons but that were used as a weapon such bottles, rocks, and sticks. | ||||||||
The number of female and male nonfatal intimate partner victims killed with guns has fallen. For female victims, the number of intimate partner victims killed by other weapons has remained stable.
[D]
See Intimate homicide in Homicide Trends in the U.S.
Location of residence (urban, suburban, rural)
On average between 2001 and 2005 —
- males and females living in urban areas reported the highest levels of nonfatal intimate partner violence.
- males and females residing in rural and suburban areas were equally likely to experience nonfatal intimate partner violence.
| Female | Male | |
|---|---|---|
| Urban | 5.5 | 1.4 |
| Suburban | 3.5 | 0.7 |
| Rural | 3.9 | 0.8 |
Intimate homicides made up a larger percentage of murders in rural areas than in suburban or urban areas.
[D]
See Trends by city size in Homicide Trends in the U.S.
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