Lane County Statistics

Same Sex Battering
Domestic violence occurs within same-sex relationships with the same statistical frequency as in heterosexual relationships.

• 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.)
• Battering among Lesbians crosses age, race, class, lifestyle and socio-economic lines. - (Lobel, ed., Naming the Violence: Speaking Out About Lesbian Battering, p.183 (1986).)
• 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)
• 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.)
• Many battered Gays or Lesbians fight back to defend themselves - it is a myth that same-sex battering is mutual. - (Murphy, Queer Justice: Equal Protection for Victims of Same-sex Domestic Violence, 30 Val. U. L. Rev. 335 (1995).)
• 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).)

Separation Violence
When a woman leaves her batterer, her risk of serious violence or death increases dramatically.

• Separated/divorced women are 14 times more likely than married women to report having been a victim of violence by their spouse or ex-spouse. (Bureau of Justice Statistics: Female victims of Violent Crime, 1991.)
• Women separated from their husbands were 3 times more likely to be victimized by spouses than divorced women, and 25 times more likely to be victimized by spouses than married women. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: Violence Against women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey (NCJ-154348), August 1995,p.4.)
• 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.)

Homicide
Domestic homicide is often the culmination of an escalating history of abuse.

• Female homicide victims are more than twice as likely to have been killed by an intimate partner than are male homicide victims. (Bureau of Justice Statistics: Female Victims of Violent Crime, December, 1996.)
• 88% of victims domestic violence fatalities had a documented history of physical abuse. (Florida Governors Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, pp. 46-48, tables 14-21.)
• 44% of victims of intimate homicides had a prior threats by the killer to kill victim or self. 30% had prior police calls to the residence. 17% had a protection order. (Florida Governor’s Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Mortality Review Project, 1997, pp. 46-48, tables 14-21.)
• 70% of intimate-partner homicide victims are women. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Selected Findings: Violence Between Intimates (NCJ-149259) November, 1994.)

Race
Race is not indicative of who is at risk of domestic violence.

• Domestic violence is statistically consistent across racial and ethnic boundaries. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey (NCJ-154348), August 1995, p.3.)

Age
Batterers and victims may experience domestic violence at any age.

• 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.)
• 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.)

Prevalence
Domestic violence crosses ethnic, racial, age, national origin, sexual orientation, religious and socioeconomic lines.

• By the most conservative estimate, each year 1 million women suffer nonfatal violence by an intimate. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey (NCJ- 154348), August 1995, p.3.)
• By other estimates, 4 million American women experience a serious assault by an intimate partner during an average 12-month period. (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.)
• Nearly 1 in 3 adult women experience at least one physical assault by a partner during adulthood. (Same as above.)

Gender
An overwhelming majority of domestic violence victims in heterosexual relationships are women.

• 90 - 95% of domestic violence victims are women. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Selected findings: Violence between Intimates (NCJ-149259), November 1994.)
• Much of female violence is committed in self-defense, and inflicts less injury than male violence. (Chalk & King, eds., Violence in Families: Assessing Prevention & Treatment Programs, National Resource Council and Institute of Medicine, p. 42 (1998).)
• 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.)

Dating Violence
Violence against intimates may occur even though the victim does not live with her abuser.

• 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.)
• An average of 28% of high school and college students experience dating violence at some point. (Brustin, S., Legal Response to Teen Dating Violence, Family Law Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 2, 331 (Summer1995).)
• Victims of dating violence report the abuse takes many forms: insults, humiliation, monitoring the victim’s movements, isolation of the victim from family and friends, suicide threats, threats to harm family or property, and physical or sexual abuse. their abusers also blamed them for the abuse, or used jealousy as as excuse. (Brustin, S., Legal Response to Teen Dating Violence, Family Law Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 2, 336 (Summer 1995) (citing Gamache, Domination and control; The Social Context of Dating Violence, Young Women in Danger, Levy, ed. 1991).)

Stalking
Batterers may attempt to frighten or control their victims through stalking.

• Some advocates believe up to 80% of stalking cases occur within intimate relationships. (Domestic Violence, Stalking and Anti-stalking Legislation, an Annual Report to congress under the Violence Against Women Act, April 1996, p. 3.)

Battered Immigrant Women
Battered immigrant women face unique legal, social and economic problems.

• 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 partner 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).)
• Although a victim may be in the country legally by virtue of her marriage to the batterer, their status may be conditional; in this situation it is common for a batterer to exert his control over his wife’s immigration status in order to force her to remain in the relationship. (Jang, Caught in a Web: Immigrant Women and Domestic Violence, National Clearinghouse (Special Issue 1994), p. 400.)
• Undocumented women may be reported to Immigration and Naturalization Services by law enforcement or social services personnel from whom they seek assistance. (Jang, Caught in a Web: Immigrant Women and Domestic Violence, National Clearinghouse (Special Issue 1994), p. 397-399.)