30 Shocking Domestic Violence Statistics That Remind Us It’s An Epidemic

The number of American troops killed in Afghanistan and Iraq between 2001 and 2012 was 6,488. The number of American women who were murdered by current or ex male partners during that time was 11,766. That’s nearly double the amount of casualties lost during war.

Women are much more likely to be victims of intimate partner violence with 85 percent of domestic abuse victims being women and 15 percent men. Too many women have been held captive by domestic violence — whether through physical abuse, financial abuse, emotional abuse or a combination of all three.

We are inundated with news stories about domestic violence , from athletes beating their significant others in public elevators or in their own homes to celebrities publicly abusing their girlfriends. This problem is not one that will go away quickly or quietly.

As Domestic Violence Awareness Month comes to an end, discussions about intimate partner abuse and its horrible repercussions should not. In an attempt to illustrate the gravity of abuse all genders (but largely women) face in the U.S., we rounded up 30 statistics on domestic violence.

Domestic violence is not a singular incident, it’s an insidious problem deeply rooted in our culture — and these numbers prove that.

3

The number of women murdered every day by a current or former male partner in the U.S.

38,028,000

The number of women who have experienced physical intimate partner violence in their lifetimes.

disabilities final

American Psychological Association

4,774,000

The number of women in the U.S. who experience physical violence by an intimate partner every year.

1,509

The number of women murdered by men they knew in 2011. Of the 1,509 women, 926 were killed by an intimate parter and 264 of those were killed by an intimate partner during an argument.

disabilities final

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

18,000

The number of women who have been killed by men in domestic violence disputes since 2003.

1 in 4

The number of women who will be victims of severe violence by an intimate partner in their lifetimes.

1 in 7

The number of men who will be victims of severe violence by an intimate partner in their lifetimes.

worldwide

World Health Organization

8,000,000

The number of days of paid work women lose every year because of the abuse perpetrated against them by current or former male partners. This loss is equivalent to over 32,000 full-time jobs.

40-45

The percentage of women in physically abusive relationships who are raped and/or assaulted during the relationship.

nine seconds

Domestic Violence Statistics

18,500,000

The number of mental health care visits due to intimate partner violence every year.

$948

The average cost of emergency care for intimate partner violence related incidents for women. The average cost for men is $387.

pregnancy

American Psychological Association

2 in 5

The number of gay or bisexual men who will experience intimate partner violence in their lifetimes.

50

The percentage of lesbian women who will experience domestic violence (not necessarily intimate partner violence) in their lifetimes.

81

The percentage of women who are stalked by a current or former male partner who are also physically abused by that partner.

firearms

Risk Factors for Femicide in Abusive Relationships: Results From A Multisite Case Control Study

70

The percentage of women worldwide who will experience physical and/or sexual abuse by an intimate partner during their lifetimes.

98

The percentage of financial abuse that occurs in all domestic violence cases. The number one reason domestic violence survivors stay or return to the abusive relationship is because the abuser controls their money supply, leaving them with no financial resources to break free.

black women

University of Minnesota’s Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community

$5,800,000,000

The estimated cost of incidents of intimate partner violence perpetrated against women in the U.S. in 1995 alone.

21

The number of LGBT people murdered by their intimate partners in 2013. Fifty percent of them were people of color. This is the highest documented level of domestic violence homicide in the LGBT community in history.

2.6x

The amount of times more likely a transgender person of color is to become a victim of intimate partner violence than a non-LGBT person.

homelessness

National Coalition for the Homelessness

70x

The amount of times more likely a woman is to be murdered in the few weeks after leaving her abusive partner than at any other time in the relationship.

10,000,000

The number of children exposed to domestic violence every year.

25

The percentage of physical assaults perpetrated against women that are reported to the police annually.

Employment and victim of violence

Legal Momentum advocates for employment policies that protect the rights of victims of violence and prevent them from losing their jobs. We train employers and unions, draft and promote new legislation, track legislative developments nationwide, and bring cases to expand and enforce the employment rights of victims.

Legal Momentum recognizes that women who are victims of violence can also be targets of employment discrimination, just when maintaining economic independence and security is most critical.

Legal Momentum’s primary goal is to strengthen and expand the employment rights and economic security of victims of gender-based violence on a national scale. We seek to help to help women victimized by domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking keep their jobs and safe housing while breaking free from violent relationships or recovering from the trauma of assault. To achieve these goals, Legal Momentum combines public education, advocacy, and targeted litigation.

Our work addresses the following issues:

Prevalence of Violence, Sexual Assault and Stalking

Domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking are widespread in the United States, affecting individuals of virtually every racial, ethnic, gender, age and socioeconomic group. One in three women in the United States are or will be victims of domestic violence. Such violence is known to increase in times of recession and greater unemployment, just when individual women, families, and other support structures – such as community shelters and government assistance programs – have fewer resources.

Victims' Economic Independence and Job Security

Studies indicate that one of the best predictors of whether a victim will stay away from his or her abuser is the victim’s degree of economic independence. However, violence often jeopardizes victims’ ability to keep a job, whether because of the need for time off for court appearances or medical attention, or abusers’ active interference or sabotage, i.e. preventing victims from going to work, harassment at work, limiting access to cash and transportation, and manipulating child-care arrangements. Accordingly, female victims are more likely than other women to be unemployed, to suffer from health problems that can affect employability and job performance, to report lower personal income, and to rely on welfare.

Community Awareness and Employer Cooperation

Employers can play a vital role in supporting a woman as she or he seeks to break away from a violent situation or recover from an assault. Legal Momentum has resources available for companies and organizations that outline best practices and policies for supporting employee victims of violence (PDF). Basic steps include: allowing victims to take leave to attend court hearings, meet with victims’ counselors and lawyers, and guarantee employees’ job security during the process. For more on workplace policies, see our "10 Principles for the Workplace" and our "This Workplace is DV-Free" campaign.

Federal and State Laws Protecting Victims

In the aftermath of the 2009 recession, Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which included important provisions that encouraged states to adopt changes to their unemployment insurance eligibility requirements. Now, most states offer unemployment insurance for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking who are forced to leave their jobs to deal with an assault. Likewise many states have laws that prevent employment discrimination against victims of these crimes. Legal Momentum publishes comprehensive State Law Guides outlining victims’ Employment Rights (PDF) and Housing Rights (PDF).

Immigrant Victims

Workplace Exploitation, Immigration Raids and Detention Policies Undocumented immigrant women confront the highest rates of personal violence in their homes and sexual harassment, coercion and exploitation at work. When federal immigration officials raid workplaces and detain undocumented workers, immigrant victims are often swept up in the process. Legal Momentum was instrumental in the creation of T-Visas and U-Visas which allow immigrant victims of trafficking or violence to stay within the country legally as they cooperate with investigations. Through our Immigrant Women Program, we continue to work the Department of Homeland Security, law enforcement and immigrant advocacy organizations to protect this vulnerable population.