October 4, 2002
Groups
Release National Study of Women Murdered by Men With Results from Maryland
The
Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition, the House of Ruth Maryland and the Maryland
Network Against Domestic Violence released a new study of female homicides.
The study, When Men Murder Women:
An Analysis of 2000 Homicide Data, prepared by the Violence
Policy Center (VPC), details female homicides involving one female murder victim
and one male offender and illustrates the unique role firearms play in female
homicide. Using FBI Supplementary
Homicide Report data, the study found that in 2000, the most recent year
available, a majority of female homicides were committed with firearms—and
that 76 percent of all female firearm homicides were committed with handguns.
The report includes a ranking of the states by the rate of female
homicides, with Mississippi ranking first in the rate of women killed by men.
The study is being released to coincide with Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Forty
females were killed by males in Maryland in 2000, placing Maryland 20th
in the nation in the rate of women murdered by men. The average age of the
female homicide victims in Maryland was 45.
Fifty-four percent of the Maryland victims were shot and killed by guns.
For homicides in which the relationship could be identified, 97% of the
Maryland victims were killed by someone they knew.
Of the victims that knew their offenders, 73% were wives, ex-wives,
common-law wives, or girlfriends of the offenders.
“This
study confirms our experience that the majority of women are not killed by
strangers, but by those that are closest to them, including spouses, intimate
acquaintances, and close relatives. Guns and domestic violence are a deadly mix,
elevating an already explosive situation. A
gun in the home is much more likely to be used to inflict harm on a woman than
to protect her,” states Carole Alexander, Executive Director of the House of
Ruth Maryland.
The
report sheds light on the nature of lethal violence against women in America,
specifically:
·
Nearly 11 times as many females
were murdered by a male they knew (1,551 victims) than were killed by male
strangers (142 victims).
·
Sixty-two percent (963) of female
homicide victims were wives or intimate acquaintances of their killers.
·
There were 331 women shot and
killed by either their husband or intimate acquaintance during the course of an
argument – nearly one women a day.
·
Black women were murdered at a rate
more than three times higher than white women (3.18 per 100,000 versus 1.01 per
100,000).
·
More female homicides were
committed with firearms (52 percent) than with all other weapons combined.
Of the homicides committed with firearms, 76 percent were committed with
handguns.
·
In 88 percent of all incidents
where the circumstances could be determined, homicides were not related
to the commission of any other felony, such as rape or robbery.
Cheryl
Hystad, Executive Director of the Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition, states, "One
of the most tragic aspects of homicides by intimate partners is that they are
preventable. Most Americans are surprised to learn that firearms, one of the
most lethal consumer products, are not regulated for health and safety. That means that there's no way to track down gun dealers who
knowingly sell to domestic abusers, no way to trace guns most commonly used in
these incidents, and no way to collect better data. It's time to end this deadly immunity from federal
oversight."
“This
study shows that women are often in the greatest danger from those they love.
The prevalence of guns in the home provides greater risk of lethality in
domestic violence situations,” explains Michaele Cohen, Executive Director of
the Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence.
For a copy of When Men Murder Women: An Analysis of 2000 Homicide Data contact Cheryl Hystad at 410-377-4960 or visit the Violence Policy Center’s web site at www.vpc.org.