More than fifty percent of all women and girls who were murdered in 2015 were killed by an intimate partner, according to a new report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Intimate partners include current and former boyfriends or husbands. The CDC study also found that minority women are disproportionately affected by intimate partner homicide, with black women and American Indian women suffering the highest murder rates at more than 4 women killed per 100,000. The intimate partner homicide rate for Hispanic women is 1.8 per 100,000, white women 1.5 per 100,000 and Asian women 1.2 per 100,000. Of the leading causes of death among women 18-44 years old, homicide ranks number 5.
The CDC provides a handbook for governments, businesses, and communities to help prevent domestic violence. The handbook classifies domestic violence as a public health issue, with homicide as the most severe outcome of such violence against women.
Compiled from: Eunjung Cha, Ariana Most female homicide victims are killed by husbands or other intimate partners, new report shows, The Washington Post (July 20, 2017).