U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Statistics Family Violence Statistics Including Statistics on Strangers and Acquaintances June 2005, NCJ 207846 --------------------------------------------------------------- This file is text only without graphics and many of the tables. A Zip archive of the tables in this report in spreadsheet format (.wk1) and the full report including tables and graphics in .pdf format are available from: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/fvs.htm --------------------------------------------------------------- By Matthew R. Durose Caroline Wolf Harlow, Ph.D. Patrick A. Langan, Ph.D. Mark Motivans, Ph.D. Ramona R. Rantala Erica L. Schmitt BJS Statisticians Assisted by Elizabeth Constantin BJS Statistical Assistant Contents Highlights, definitions, and counting rules Definitions Sources of data on family violence Counting rules Reported and unreported family violence About the data in this section Offense type Offense location Victim demographics Victim injury Victim medical care Offender demographics Offender weapon use Offender drug or alcohol use Number of victims and offenders Fatal family violence About the data in this section Victim demographics Offender demographics Offender weapon use Number of victims and offenders Family violence reported to police About the data in this section Percent of family violence reported to police Reporting rates by offense Reporting rates by victim demographics Reporting rates by whether offender had a Weapon Reasons for not reporting family violence to police Person who reported family violence to police Arrest rate by offense Family violence recorded by police About the data in this section Offense type Offense location Victim demographics Victim injury Offender demographics Offender weapon use Number of victims and offenders Arrests by offense Arrestee demographics Victim demographics in crimes leading to arrest ( Arrest rate by offense Arrest rate by arrestee demographics Arrest rate by victim demographics Weapon possession at time of arrest Disposition of juvenile arrestees State prosecution of family assault About the data in this section Defendant demographics Prior arrests Prior felony arrests Prior convictions Prior felony convictions Criminal justice status at time of arrest Pretrial release Bail amount Time from arrest to pretrial release Time from arrest to adjudication Court outcome Time from conviction to sentencing Length of prison and jail sentences imposed Federal prosecution of domestic violence About the data in this section Offense type Investigating agency Profile of convicted offenders Family violence offenders in prison About the data in this section Offense type Offense location Victim demographics Victim injury Offender demographics Offender weapon use Offender drug or alcohol use Number of victims and offenders Federal, State, and local correctional facilities Prior sentences Family violence offenders in jail About the data in this section Offense type Offense location Victim demographics Victim injury Restraining orders among jail inmates convicted of family violence Offender demographics Offender weapon use Offender drug or alcohol use Number of victims and offenders Methodology Reported and unreported family violence Fatal family violence Family violence recorded by police State prosecution of family assault Federal prosecution of domestic violence Family violence offenders in prison Family violence offenders in jail Appendix Discrepant findings from two different ways of measuring family violence Highlights, definitions, and counting rules Introduction This compendium contains the most recent family violence statistics from these sources: surveys conducted by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), the BJS database of Federal statistics, and two statistical databases maintained by the FBI. The sources provide statistical snapshots of family violence at different stages in the administration of justice. First are statistics on the nature and extent of family violence. Next are statistics on family violence that is reported to police, followed by statistics on the prosecution of persons charged with family violence. Lastly are statistics on persons sent to prison or jail for family violence. The report is divided into eight sections giving statistics on -- * Reported and unreported family violence * Fatal family violence * Family violence reported to police * Family violence recorded by police * State prosecution of family assault * Federal prosecution of domestic violence * Family violence offenders in prison * Family violence offenders in jail. Highlights Trends in family violence The rate of family violence fell between 1993 and 2002 from an estimated 5.4 victims to 2.1 victims per 1,000 U.S. residents age 12 or older. Throughout the period family violence accounted for about 1 in 10 violent victimizations. Reported and unreported family violence Family violence accounted for 11% of all reported and unreported violence between 1998 and 2002. Of these roughly 3.5 million violent crimes committed against family members, 49% were crimes against spouses, 11% were sons or daughters victimized by a parent, and 41% were crimes against other family members. The most frequent type of family violence offense was simple assault. Murder was less than half of 1% of all family violence between 1998 and 2002. About three-fourths of all family violence occurred in or near the victim's residence. Forty percent of family violence victims were injured during the incident. Of the 3.5 million victims of family violence between 1998 and 2002, less than 1% died as a result of the incident. The majority (73%) of family violence victims were female. Females were 84% of spouse abuse victims and 86% of victims of abuse at the hands of a boyfriend or girlfriend. While about three-fourths of the victims of family violence were female, about three-fourths of the persons who committed family violence were male. Most family violence victims were white (74%), and the majority were between ages 25 and 54 (65.7%). Most family violence offenders were white (79%), and most were age 30 or older (62%). Fatal family violence About 22% of murders in 2002 were family murders. Nearly 9% were murders of a spouse, 6% were murders of sons or daughters by a parent, and 7% were murders by other family members. Females were 58% of family murder victims. Of all the murders of females in 2002, family members were responsible for 43%. Children under age 13 were 23% of murder victims killed by a family member, and just over 3% of nonfamily murder victims. The average age among sons or daughters killed by a parent was 7 years, and 4 out of 5 victims killed by a parent were under age 13. Eight in ten murderers who killed a family member were male. Males were 83% of spouse murderers and 75% of murderers who killed a boyfriend or girlfriend. In 2002 family murders were less likely than nonfamily murders to involve a firearm (50% versus 68%). Parents were the least likely family murderers to use a firearm (28%), compared to spouses (63%) or other family members (51%). Among incidents of parents killing their children, 19% involved one parent killing multiple victims. Family violence reported to police Approximately 60% of family violence victimizations were reported to police between 1998 and 2002. The reporting rate among female victims was not significantly greater than the reporting rate among male victims. The most common reason victims of family violence cited for not reporting the crime to police was that the incident was a "private/personal matter" (34%). Another 12% of non-reporting family violence victims did not report the crime in order to "protect the offender." Among the 2.1 million incidents of family violence reported to police between 1998 and 2002, 36% resulted in an arrest. Family violence recorded by police Family violence accounted for 33% of all violent crimes recorded by police in 18 States and the District of Columbia in 2000. Of these more than 207,000 family violence crimes, about half (53%, or 110,000)were crimes between spouses. Among crimes recorded by police, 2% of family violence involved a firearm, compared to 6% of nonfamily violence. A weapon was used in 16% of family and 21% of nonfamily violence. About 6% of all violent crime recorded by police in 2000 involved more than one offender victimizing a lone victim. The exception was stranger crime, in which 14% of incidents involved multiple offenders victimizing a lone victim. About 49% of family violence crimes recorded by police resulted in an arrest. Males comprised 77% of suspected family violence offenders arrested in 2000. State prosecution of family assault Of the approximately 1,500 defendants charged with felony assault during May 2000 in the State courts of 11 large counties, about a third were charged with family violence. Among felony assault defendants charged with family violence in State courts, 84% had at least one prior arrest for either a felony or a misdemeanor (not necessarily for family violence), and 73% had been previously convicted of some type of felony or misdemeanor (not necessarily family violence). Nearly half of felony assault defendants charged with family violence were released pending case disposition. Among the 1,500 felony assault cases, the probability of the case leading to conviction (felony or misdemeanor) was greater for family assault defendants (71%) than nonfamily assault defendants (61%). State courts sentenced 83% of persons convicted of assault (both family and nonfamily) to either prison or jail. Among felony assault defendants convicted in State courts -- * 68% of incarceration sentences for family assault were to jail * 62% of incarceration sentences for nonfamily assault were to prison * 45% of persons sent to prison for family assault received a sentence of more than 2 years, compared to 77% of nonfamily assault offenders sent to prison. Federal prosecution of domestic violence Persons suspected of domestic violence made up 4% of the total 18,653 Federal suspects referred to U.S. attorneys for alleged violent crimes from 2000 to 2002. Of the 757 suspects referred to U.S. attorneys for domestic violence offenses between 2000 and 2002, most were firearm-related domestic violence offenses rather than interstate domestic violence offenses. * The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives accounted for 80% of all referrals for firearm-related domestic violence. * The FBI accounted for 72% of all interstate domestic violence referrals. Federal courts convicted 90% of defendants adjudicated for an interstate domestic violence offense. Among defendants convicted in federal courts -- * 79% of convictions were the product of a guilty plea, and the remaining 21% were the product of conviction following a trial * most were male (96%), under age 40 (67%), white (72%), and non-Hispanic (95%) * 4 in 5 defendants had a prior adult conviction. Of 47 Federal defendants sentenced for an interstate domestic violence offense between 2000 and 2002, 91% received a prison term with a median length of 60 months. Family violence offenders in prison Of the nearly 500,000 men and women in State prisons for a violent crime in 1997, 15% were there for a violent crime against a family member. Nearly half of all the family violence offenders in State prisons were serving a sentence for a sex offense against a family member. More than three-quarters of parents convicted of a violent crime against their son or daughter were in prison for a sex offense. Of the crimes for which family violence offenders were in prison -- * most were against a female (78%) * more than half were against a child under age 18 * more than a third were against a child under age 13. About 90% of offenders in State prisons for family violence had injured their victim: * 50% of family violence victims were raped or sexually assaulted * 28% of the victims of family violence were killed * 50% of offenders in State prisons for spousal abuse had killed their victims * Of State prison inmates imprisoned for a crime against their son or daughter, 79% had raped or sexually assaulted the child, and another 10% had killed the child. Among family violence offenders in State prisons in 1997 -- * most were male (93%) * 6 out of 10 were white, while about a quarter were black * about 80% were between ages 25 and 54. Among offenders whose incarceration in State prisons was for family violence, 23% had used a weapon to commit their crime. The comparable percentage among State prisoners incarcerated for nonfamily violence was higher-- 46%. Family violence offenders in jail Convicted family violence offenders made up about 22% of the nearly 86,500 convicted violent offenders in local jails in 2002. Most (60%) of these approximately 18,700 jail inmates incarcerated for family violence were in jail for an aggravated assault. Local jail inmates convicted of family violence reported that -- * their victims were predominantly female (79%) * nearly 30% of their victims were under age 18. Among local jail inmates convicted of family violence, 55% injured their victim. Most convicted jail inmates serving time for violence against a family member (88%) did not use a weapon during the crime. Among jail inmates convicted of family violence, 45% had been subject to a restraining order at some point in their life. About 18% were under an active restraining order at the time of admission to jail. Definitions Violent crime Unless indicated otherwise, statistics on violent crime in this report pertain to all forms of the following crimes: criminal homicide, completed and attempted rape, sexual assault (including threats), robbery, assault (including threats), kidnaping, intimidation, illegal abortion, extortion, cruelty towards child or wife, hit-and-run driving with bodily injury, and miscellaneous crimes against persons (as opposed to crimes against property). Family violence Unless indicated otherwise, family violence includes all types of violent crime committed by an offender who is related to the victim either biologically or legally through marriage or adoption. A crime is considered family violence if the victim was the offender's current or former spouse; parent or adoptive parent; current or former stepparent; legal guardian; biological or adoptive child; current or former stepchild; sibling; current or former step sibling; grandchild; current or former step- or adoptive-grandchild; grandparent; current or former step- or adoptive-grandparent; in-law; or other relative (aunt, uncle, nephew). Nonfamily violence Unless indicated otherwise, nonfamily violence includes all types of violent crime between current or former boyfriends and girlfriends; between current or former friends and acquaintances; and between strangers. Relationship of victim to offender The databases used in this report all contain sufficient information to permit identification of family violence cases. However, the types of information that make identification possible are not uniform. Some provide more relationship categories than others. For example, the Supplemental Homicide Reports provides 28 different categories of victim- offender relationship, while the National Crime Victimization Survey has 15 categories. Also, the databases use different terms to describe specific victim-offender relationships. For example, one uses the category "employee/employer," while another uses "colleague at work." In general, enough information was available in each of the databases to distinguish six categories of victim- offender relationship: three family categories (spouse, son or daughter, and other family), and three nonfamily categories (boyfriend/girlfriend, friend/ acquaintance, and stranger). Most sections of the report present statistics on all six categories. Sources of data on family violence National Crime Victimization Survey (a BJS survey) One data source used to document the nature and extent of family violence in the United States is the BJS National Crime Victimization Survey, or NCVS, for 1998 to 2002. The NCVS compiles data on family and nonfamily violence through biannual interviews with nationally representative samples of U.S. residents age 12 or older. In these interviews, residents are asked if they were a recent victim of crime. Those who were victims are then asked numerous questions about the incident, such as where it occurred and whether they knew the offender. Residents are encouraged to tell interviewers both about crimes that were reported to police and about unreported crimes. Because the survey data come from interviews with victims, the NCVS has no information on homicide. The survey's scope is limited to certain forms of nonfatal violence: rape and sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault. Based on interviews with the Nation's crime victims, estimates are formed not only of how many of these crimes occur each year but also of the characteristics pertaining to the criminal incidents. Such characteristics include the number of victims that obtained medical care for their injuries, the number that reported the crime to police, and the number whose assailant was a relative. Supplementary Homicide Reports (an FBI database) For national statistics on family homicide for the year 2002, the source used in this report was the FBI's Supplementary Homicide Reports, or SHR. The FBI compiles detailed national data on family and nonfamily homicide from the thousands of law enforcement agencies across the Nation. For each criminal homicide, the SHR record such information as the age and race of the offender, the relationship of the victim to the offender, and the type of weapon used in the killing. National Incident-Based Reporting System (an FBI database) For statistics on family violence that comes to police attention and for statistics on arrests for family violence, the source used in this report is the database for the year 2000 from the National Incident- Based Reporting System, or NIBRS. The database, compiled by the FBI, contains NIBRS data from at least 1 police agency in each of 18 States and the District of Columbia. These jurisdictions cover about 16% of the U.S. population and do not include any areas with a population of one million or more. The NIBRS data have information on victims, offenders, persons arrested, and incidents of family and nonfamily violence. For example, information on victims includes the type of injury sustained and the victim's relationship to the offender. Among the various details available on offenders and arrestees are their age, race, and gender. Offense characteristics available in the NIBRS data include the type of weapon used and the type of location where the crime occurred. State Court Processing Statistics (a BJS data collection) No national data in the United States describe the processing of family violence cases from arrest through final disposition by a court. The available alternative used in this report is an extract of the BJS data collection State Court Processing Statistics (SCPS). The SCPS data used are entirely from police and court records that tracked family and nonfamily assault cases in 11 counties, from the filing of State court charges in May of 2000 to their final court disposition. These data include information about persons arrested and charged with family and nonfamily assault: their demographic characteristics, their prior arrest and conviction record, and their criminal justice status at time of arrest. The SCPS data also contain information about the processing of the assault cases, such as type of pretrial release, adjudication outcome, and type of sentence imposed. Federal Justice Statistics Program (a BJS database) Information regarding violations of family violence- related Federal statutes that were subsequently referred to Federal court come from the Federal Justice Statistics Program (FJSP), a database maintained by the Bureau of Justice Statistics. FJSP provides annual data on workload, activities, and outcomes associated with Federal criminal cases. Data for 2000 to 2002 were acquired on all aspects of processing in the Federal justice system, including the number of persons investigated, prosecuted, convicted, and incarcerated. The FJSP database is a BJS database, constructed from files provided by the U.S. Marshals Service, the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, the United States Sentencing Commission, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities (a BJS survey) For national statistics on persons in prison for family violence, this report used the BJS Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities, conducted in 1997. The survey involves face-to-face interviews with a nationally representative sample of State prisoners. Persons in prison for either family or nonfamily violence are included in the sample. Through interviews with them, information is obtained on their victims and on numerous other characteristics of the crime that brought them into prison, such as whether a weapon was used, and the location of the offense. Survey of Inmates in Local Jails (a BJS survey) For statistics on inmates who were convicted of family violence and sentenced to a period of incarceration of less than 1 year, the source used in this report is the BJS Survey of Inmates in Local Jails. This is a periodic survey which describes the current offenses and offense characteristics of local jail inmates. Most recently conducted in 2002, face-to-face interviews were conducted with a nationally representative sample of local jail inmates to collect systematic information on this special correctional population. Questions were asked regarding the relationship of the victim to the incarcerated offender, the gender, race/ Hispanic origin, and age of victims and offenders, injury to the victim, offender use of a weapon, offender substance use at the time of the crime, and the place at which the crime occurred. Uniform counting rules Incidents of crime vary depending on the number of offenders, number of offenses committed, and number of victims. For instance, in a single incident where two men rape and rob a woman, there are two offenders, four offenses (a rape and a robbery committed by each man), and a single victim. Such an incident differs from one in which a lone man assaults another individual. That incident involves one offender, one offense, and one victim. The various databases used in this report are not uniform in the amount of information they contain about each incident of crime. One of the databases (NIBRS) contains information on virtually every offender, every victim, and every offense in an incident. The other databases contain less information. For example, offender characteristics available in the prisoner database pertain only to each individual incarcerated offender. The incident that resulted in that person's incarceration may have involved multiple offenders, but information on co-offenders was unavailable. To improve the comparability of statistics across the databases, rules were adopted to guide tabulations. All statistics in this report -- that is, statistics on offenders, on offenses, and on victims -- follow the rule that each incident be treated as though it involved one offender, one offense, and one victim. If an incident involved more than one offender and information (such as age, race, and gender) was available on more than one offender, the available data on just one of the offenders were tabulated. Similarly, if an incident involved more than one offense and information on the different offenses (such as the place where each occurred) was available, only the data on one of the offenses were counted. Likewise, if an incident involved more than one victim and the database contained information (such as the victim's age, race, and gender) on more than one victim, victim statistics used in the analysis were based on just one of the victims. Certain databases used in the report -- NCVS, SHR, and NIBRS were victim-based. Choosing a particular victim to characterize an incident was unnecessary with these databases. Other data collections used in the report -- Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities and Survey of Inmates in Local Jails -- were offender-based. Choosing a particular offender to characterize an incident was unnecessary with these sources. Where choices had to be made about which offender, which offense, or which victim characterized an incident, the choices were guided by various hierarchies. Information about the hierarchies is summarized below. In choosing a particular offender to characterize an incident, the choice was guided by the victim's relationship to the offender. For example, in a single incident in which a woman was assaulted by her husband and a stranger, the incident was treated as a spouse- on-spouse assault. Offender statistics for such an incident (such as age, race, and gender) therefore pertained solely to the characteristics of the husband; characteristics of the stranger were not tabulated. Selecting the husband over the stranger to characterize the incident conforms to a rule adopted for this report that says to select whichever offender is highest in the following victim-to-offender relationship hierarchy (shown in order from highest to lowest, with column headings in italics): Spouse spouse and common-law spouse ex-spouse Son or daughter child stepchild Other family parent and stepparent sibling and step-sibling grandchild grandparent in-laws other relative Boyfriend or girlfriend boy/girlfriend ex-boy/girlfriend homosexual partner Friend or acquaintance child of girl or boyfriend friend neighbor employer employee acquaintance babysittee otherwise known Stranger stranger Not included in analysis relationship unknown When it was necessary to choose a single victim to characterize an incident, the victim-offender relationship hierarchy was also used. Again, the chosen victim was the one highest in the hierarchy. In choosing a particular offense to characterize an incident, the choice was guided by the offense's position in a hierarchy of offense seriousness. The offense highest in the hierarchy was selected to characterize the incident. For example, in a single incident where the victim was raped and murdered, the offense selected to characterize the incident was murder because murder is higher in the offense seriousness hierarchy than rape. The offense seriousness hierarchy (from most to least serious) generally corresponds to the offense list shown in table 5.1. As noted earlier, each incident tabulated in this report was treated as having one offender, one offense, and one victim. Each incident was also treated as having one offense location, one victim injury (if any), one weapon involved (if any), one arrestee (if any), and one arrest offense (if any). The characteristic's position in a hierarchy determined which characteristic (for example, which injury) was tabulated. The characteristic with the highest position was chosen. Listed in order from highest to lowest, the offense location hierarchy is in table 5.2; victim injury hierarchy, table 8.4; offender weapon use hierarchy, table 5.6; and arrest offense hierarchy, table 5.8. The arrestee hierarchy is the same as the victim-to-offender relationship hierarchy described above. Reported and unreported family violence About the data in this section Statistics in this section compare family violence to nonfamily violence in terms of offense, victim, and offender characteristics. For tables 2.1, 2.3 and 2.4, violence is broadly defined to include both fatal and nonfatal violence. For table 2.2 and tables 2.5 through 2.9, violence includes only nonfatal violence. The data on nonfatal violence are from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) for 1998 through 2002. NCVS data on crimes that occurred from the beginning of 1998 through the end of 2002 were compiled through interviews with nationally representative samples of the general population ages 12 and older. The data on fatal violence are from police murder statistics for 1998 through 2002 as compiled by the FBI in its Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR) for the corresponding years. Together, data from the NCVS and the SHR document approximately 33.6 million victims of fatal and nonfatal violence. Information on the type of criminal violence -- family versus nonfamily -- was available on 32.2 million out of the total 33.6 million. The tables in this section that pertain to all violence -- fatal and nonfatal combined -- provide information on the 32.2 million crimes; the tables that pertain only to nonfatal violence, 32.1 million crimes. -------------------------------------------- Two differing measures of family violence The extent of family violence is measured two different ways in this report -- through survey interviews with crime victims and through statistics compiled by police. Victimization surveys indicate that family violence makes up 11% of all violence. Police statistics show family violence as 33% of all violence. Reasons for this discrepancy are discussed in the Appendix of this report on page 71. ------------------------------------------------ Family violence as a proportion of all violence Of the nearly 32.2 million total victims of violence between 1998 and 2002, 11% (3.5 million) were victims of family violence. The remaining 89% (28.6 million) were victims of nonfamily violence. Violence by one spouse against another was 5.4% of all violence between 1998 and 2002, while violence by a parent against a son or daughter was 1.1% of total violent crime. The most frequent type of criminal violence was stranger violence, which accounted for nearly half (46.1%) of all fatal and nonfatal violence that occurred between 1998 and 2002. The roughly 3.5 million violent crimes committed against family members during 1998 to 2002 consisted of the following: 48.9% were crimes against a spouse; 10.5% were sons or daughters victimized by a parent; and the remaining 40.6% were crimes against other members of the offender's family (for example, parents victimized by sons or daughters, brothers victimized by siblings, and grandparents victimized by grandchildren). Types of crime between family members Of the approximately 3.5 million violent crimes committed against family members between 1998 and 2002, the most serious crime -- murder -- made up less than 1% (0.3%). The least serious violent crime -- simple assault -- made up over two-thirds of the total. The types of crimes committed against family members and the types against nonfamily members were similar. For example, murder was less than 1% of both family (0.3%) and nonfamily violence (0.1%). Also, aggravated assault made up 18.1% of crimes against family members and 20% of those against nonfamily members. Simple assault was the most frequent type of family (69.6%) and nonfamily violent crime (65.1%). Regardless of the relationship of the victim to the offender, simple assault was the most frequent type of offense committed. Nearly a quarter of the murders committed from 1998 to 2002 were against a family member. Aggravated assaults by members of the same family made up 10.1% of all aggravated assaults between 1998 and 2002. --------------------------------------- Trends in family violence Between 1993 and 2002 the rate of family violence declined. In 1993 an estimated 5.4 victims per 1,000 persons age 12 or older were victimized by a family member, such as a spouse or a parent. In 2002 that rate had fallen to approximately 2.1 family violence victims per 1,000 persons age 12 or older. The downward trend in the rate of family violence mirrored the overall downward trend of all violent crime during the same period. Family violence as a proportion of all violent victimizations has remained fairly stable over the past 10 years. Between 1993 and 2002 about 1 in 10 violent crimes were committed by family members. ---------------------------------------------- Places where family violence occurs Of the estimated 32.1 million nonfatal violent crimes committed from 1998 to 2002, 42% occurred in a public place, such as on a highway or road, in a parking lot or garage, or at a school or college. A smaller percentage (29.6%) took place in or near the victim's own residence. Nearly 9 out of 10 incidents of family violence occurred in or near a residence, either the residence of the victim or the residence of a friend, relative, or neighbor of the victim. An estimated 73.5% of family violence took place at or near the home of the victim, with an additional 15% occurring at the home of a friend, relative, or neighbor. The majority of spouse violence (78.1%) and boyfriend/girlfriend violence (64%) occurred in the victim's home. Nonfamily violence was more likely to occur in a public place than at or near the residence of the victim. The location of 46.5% of nonfamily violence was a public place, while 23.9% took place at or near the victim's home. An additional 11.1% of nonfamily violence happened at a commercial property. About a quarter of the violence against the offenders' friends or acquaintances between 1998 and 2002 occurred at a school or college. Stranger violence was the category of violence, family or nonfamily, least likely to take place at or near the residential property of the victim or a friend, relative, or neighbor of the victim. An estimated 23.2% of stranger violence occurred at, in, or near the home of the victim (16.9%) or a friend, relative, or neighbor (6.3%). Comparable percentages for other categories were 37.4% of the violence against friends and acquaintances; 80.1% of boyfriend or girlfriend violence; 87.6% of spouse abuse; 93.7% of violence by a parent against a son or daughter; and 88.2% of violence against other family members. Demographic characteristics of family violence victims Gender Females were more likely than males to be victimized by family violence, and more likely than males to be victimized by specific types of family violence. Females were 51.6% of the U.S. population age 12 or older between 1998 and 2002 but 73.4% of the Nation's victims of family violence. Similarly, females were about 50% of all spouses and romantic partners but were 84.3% of spouse abuse victims and 85.9% of the victims of violence between boyfriends and girlfriends. Males were more likely than females to be victimized by nonfamily violence. Between 1998 and 2002, males were 48.4% of the U.S. population age 12 or older but 58.4% of victims of nonfamily violence and 68.3% of the victims of violence by strangers. Race/Hispanic origin Whites and blacks were more likely than Hispanics or persons of other races to be victimized by family violence. Between 1998 and 2002, non-Hispanic whites were 72.9% of the U.S. population age 12 or older but 74% of family violence victims. Non- Hispanic blacks were 12.1% of the population age 12 or older but 13.6% of family violence victims. By contrast, Hispanics were 10.9% of the population age 12 or older but 10.1% of family violence victims. Corresponding figures for persons of other races were 4.1% of the 12 or older population and 2.3% of family violence victims. Rates of victimization from family violence were relatively high for American Indians and Alaska Natives, and relatively low for Asians and Pacific Islanders. Together, American Indians and Alaska Natives made up 0.4% of the U.S. population age 12 or older between 1998 and 2002 but 1.6% of the victims of family violence. Corresponding figures for Asians and Pacific Islanders were 3.6% of the 12 or older population but 0.5% of family violence victims. Age The average age of the 3.5 million victims of family violence was 34. Victims of nonfamily violence were slightly younger overall, with an average age of just under 29 years. Average ages for other victims were age 35 for persons victimized by their spouses; age 21 for sons and daughters victimized by their parents; age 35 for those victimized by other family members; age 27 for victims of violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend; age 27 for persons victimized by friends and acquaintances; and age 30 for victims of stranger violence. Adults between ages 25 and 54 comprised two-thirds of the victims of family violence. Persons age 25-34 were 16.7% of the U.S. population age 12 or older but 24.5% of family violence victims, and persons age 35-54 were 36% of the population age 12 or older but 41.2% of family violence victims. Young adults age 18-24 also represented a segment of family violence victims larger than their corresponding percentage in the U.S. population. Persons from 18 to 24 years old were 11.7% of the population age 12 or older between 1998 and 2002 but 17.6% of family violence victims. The oldest adults -- those 55 or older -- were the least likely to be family violence victims between 1998 and 2002: they comprised 25% of the U.S. population age 12 or older during those years but 6% of the victims. Injuries to family violence victims Not all victims of violence sustain an injury from the crime. The assailant may have verbally threatened to hurt the victim but did not actually do anything that resulted in physical harm. Similarly, the offender may have tried to inflict physical harm but did not succeed because the victim was able to flee. Of the 32.2 million victims of violent crime between 1998 and 2002, most (71.3%) were not injured. About a quarter sustained an injury. While comprising 11% of all violent crime victims, family violence victims made up 15.2% of injured victims, indicating that the likelihood of injury was greater in family violence than in nonfamily violence (not in a table). The likelihood of injury was comparatively high for these victims as well: victims of spouse violence (5.4% of all victims but 7.8% of injured victims), and victims of violence between boyfriends and girlfriends (6.3% of all victims but 11.6% of injured victims). Medical attention for injured family violence victims The majority (71.4%) of nonfatal violence victims did not sustain an injury during the incident. The remaining 28.6%, or 9.2 million victims, sustained injuries ranging from serious, including gun shot wounds and rape, to minor, such as bruises and minor cuts. Of the 9.2 million victims of a nonfatal violent crime who were injured, 41% received medical attention for their injuries (11.7% / 28.6% = 40.9%). This medical care could be given by the victim, by a person without medical training like a bystander or relative, or by a medical professional. The treatment could range from a cold pack to surgery. Of the 1.4 million injured victims of family violence, 42% (16.5% / 39.3% = 42%) received treatment; among the 7.8 million injured nonfamily violence victims, 40.7% (11.1% / 27.3% = 40.7%). Sixteen and one-half percent of the 3.5 million victims of violence by a family member received medical care for injuries that resulted from the incident. This percentage was higher than the corresponding percentage of nonfamily violence victims (11.1%). Persons violently victimized by their boyfriend or girlfriend (52.6%) were more likely than persons victimized by their spouse (41.5%) to be injured. Boyfriend/girlfriend violence victims (18.7%) were not more likely than spouse violence victims (18.1%) to get medical care for those injuries. Among the 28.6 million victims of nonfamily violence, boyfriend/girlfriend violence victims (18.7%) were more likely to receive medical attention for injuries inflicted during the incident than victims of friend/acquaintance violence (10.3%)and stranger violence (10.6%). Demographic characteristics of family violence offenders Gender Between 1998 and 2002, nearly 4 out of 5 violent offenders were male. Males accounted for 75.6% of family violence offenders and 80.4% of nonfamily violence offenders. Among violent crimes against a spouse, 86.1% of the offenders were male; against a boyfriend or girlfriend, 82.4%; and against a stranger, 86% of the offenders were male. The 3.5 million family violence crimes that occurred between 1998 and 2002 involved a larger percentage of female offenders than the 28.6 million nonfamily violence crimes. Females were 22.6% of offenders committing family violence, compared to 16.4% of nonfamily violence offenders. Violent crimes between friends and acquaintances (24%) were more likely to involve a female offender than violence between boyfriends and girlfriends (15.6%) and stranger violence (10.4%). Race/Hispanic origin Between 1998 and 2002, 62% of violence victims reported that the offender was white. Among family violence offenders, 78.5% were white, an additional 14.9% were black, and 6.6% were some other race. Among nonfamily violence offenders, 59.9% were white, 25.8% were black, and 14.3% were some other race. Age The majority of violent offenders were age 18 or older. Approximately a fifth of offenders were under 18. An additional 9.1% of violent crimes involved multiple offenders of mixed ages (for example, a robbery involving two offenders, one who was 20 and the other, 35). Offenders involved in family violence were generally older than nonfamily violence offenders. An estimated 62.4% of family violence offenders were age 30 or older, compared to 30.7% of nonfamily violence offenders. Fewer offenders who committed family violence were under age 18 (10.7%) than those committing nonfamily violence (23.8%). A larger percentage of spouse abuse offenders (73%) was age 30 or older, compared to 36.6% of offenders who abused their boyfriend or girlfriend. In addition, about a quarter of spouse abuse offenders were between 18 and 29, while about half of offenders who abused a boyfriend or girlfriend were in this age range. About a third of violence between friends and acquaintances involved offenders who were under age 18. This proportion was greater than the corresponding percentages for boyfriend/ girlfriend violence (5.8%) and stranger violence (16.2%). Weapon use and family violence In the NCVS, victims of violent crime were asked whether the offender had a weapon. A weapon could be a gun, a knife, some other sharp object (such as scissors or an ice pick), or a blunt object (such as a rock or a baseball bat). In a quarter of nonfatal violence incidents, victims reported that the offender had a weapon. The percentage of family violence offenders who had a weapon during the crime was lower than the percentage of nonfamily violence offenders. An estimated 19.5% of family violence cases involved an offender with a weapon, compared to 26.5% of nonfamily violence cases. Of the 28.6 million violent crimes against nonfamily members, stranger violence was more likely to involve a weapon than other types of nonfamily violence. Among offenders who committed violent crimes against strangers, 34.6% had a weapon, compared to 16.5% of offenders who were boyfriends or girlfriends and 18.7% of offenders who were friends or acquaintances. Drug and alcohol use by family violence offenders The NCVS asks victims to indicate whether they thought the offender or offenders were drinking or on drugs at the time of the criminal incident. Of the 32.1 million nonfatal violent crimes that took place between 1998 and 2002, 30% of victims said the offender was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. An additional 29.2% indicated the offender was sober at the time, and 40.8% said they did not know. A larger percentage of family violence victims (38.5%) reported the offender was under the influence of drugs or alcohol during the incident than did nonfamily violence victims (28.9%). Offenders who abused their boyfriend or girlfriend were more likely than other types of nonfamily violence offenders to be drinking or using drugs. Four out of 10 (41.4%) offenders involved in violence with a boyfriend or girlfriend were under the influence of drugs or alcohol, compared to 26.3% of offenders involved in violence against a friend or acquaintance and 29.3% of stranger violence. Excluding the 19.5% of family violence victims who did not know whether the offender was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the incident, approximately 2.8 million victims of family violence were able to indicate whether the offender was or was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol. In nearly half the incidents, family violence victims reported the offender had been using drugs or alcohol at the time of the offense. Number of victims and offenders in family violence Between 1998 and 2002, most of the 32.1 million nonfatal violent crimes involved an individual victim (85.6%). More than three-quarters (78.7%) involved a lone victim victimized by a lone offender (for example, a woman robbed by a man as she approaches her car in a parking lot). Approximately 14% of violence involved multiple victims, with about 1 in 8 crimes perpetrated by a single offender against multiple victims (for example, a lone offender physically assaulting three people at a nightclub). Family violence (90.7%) was more likely than nonfamily violence (85%) to be committed against a lone victim. Family violence (88.6%) was also more likely than nonfamily violence (77.4%) to involve one victim being victimized by one offender. Nonfamily violence (7.6%) was more likely than family violence (2%) to involve one victim and multiple offenders, such as when three strangers rape a lone female. Crimes involving multiple victims were less likely to occur against family members (9.3%) than against nonfamily members (15%). Among nonfamily violent crimes that involved one victim, the more distant the relationship between the victim and the offender(s), the greater the likelihood the crime involved multiple offenders. A greater percentage of stranger violence (10.7%) involved a single victim and multiple offenders than friend or acquaintance violence (5.2%) or boyfriend/girlfriend violence (1.8%). The type of nonfamily violence most likely to involve multiple victims was also stranger violence. Nearly 18% of stranger crimes involved multiple victims, compared to 12.8% of crimes against friends or acquaintances and 7.1% of boyfriends or girlfriends. Boyfriend/girlfriend violence (7.1%)was the category of nonfamily violence the least likely to involve multiple victims. Fatal family violence About the data in this section This section compares family murders to nonfamily murders. Statistics shown in tables 3.1 through 3.4, as well as those summarized in the text, are all based on police murder statistics compiled by the FBI in the 2002 Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR). The 2002 SHR contains information on 16,204 murders and nonnegligent manslaughters that occurred throughout the United States in 2002. The victim's relationship to the offender was recorded in 9,102 out of the 16,204 murders. All data summarized in this section pertain to these 9,102 murder victims whose relationship to the offender was recorded. One reason the relationship of the victim to the offender was not recorded for all 16,204 murders is that many murder investigations fail to uncover the identity of the perpetrator. In 2002 the murder clearance rate (a measure of how often police solve a murder) was 64%. Family murder as a proportion of all murders Of the 9,102 murder victims (with complete data on victim- offender relationship) in 2002, 21.5% (1,958 victims) were killed by members of their family. The 9,102 murder victims consisted of 8.6% who were killed by their spouse, 5.5% who were sons and daughters killed by a parent, 7.4% who were killed by a family member other than their spouse or parent, 7.3% who were killed by their boyfriend or girlfriend, 45.2% who were killed by a friend or acquaintance, and 26% who were killed by a stranger. Demographic characteristics of murder victims Gender Females were more likely than males to be victims of family murder. Females were 50.9% of the U.S. population in 2002 but 57.5% of the Nation's victims of family murder that year. Family members were responsible for 43.1% of all the murders of females in 2002. Wives were more likely than husbands to be killed by their spouse. Wives were about half of all spouses in the population in 2002 but 81% of all persons killed by their spouse. Girlfriends were more likely than boyfriends to be victims of murder. Girlfriends were about 50% of all boyfriend- girlfriend relationships but 71% of all victims who were a boyfriend or girlfriend of the murderer. Sons and daughters were about equally likely to be killed by their parents. Sons made up about 50% of all offspring and about 50% of all sons and daughters killed by their parents. In 2002 murders committed by friends or acquaintances accounted for 4,113 of the 9,102 murders (with complete data on victim-offender relationship). Males were more likely than females to be victims of this type of nonfamily murder. While males were 49.1% of the U.S. population in 2002, they were 83.4% of murder victims killed by a friend or acquaintance. The victims of stranger murder were also more likely to be male (86.1%). ------------------------------------- Murder by siblings Family members other than a spouse, son, or daughter accounted for 7.4% of the 9,102 murder victims in 2002. Among these 671 murders of other family members, 18% -- 119 murders-- involved a sibling victim. The remaining 82% of these murders were against parents, in-laws, or other family members. In 2002, 72% of murders by siblings involved a brother killing a brother and 14% involved a brother killing a sister. An additional 14% of sibling murders involved a sister killing a brother or sister. ----------------------------------------- Race Overall, whites were less likely to be victims of murder than blacks. In 2002, whites (defined here as both Hispanic and non-Hispanic) were 80.7% of the U.S. population and 56.6% of murder victims, while blacks (also defined as both Hispanic and non-Hispanic) were 12.7% of the U.S. population but 39.9% of those killed. Of the 787 identifiable incidents of spousal murder in 2002, whites were 70% of those killed, blacks were 24%, and Asians (including Pacific Islanders) made up 5.6% of victims. In the 500 identifiable incidents of parents' killing their children in 2002, whites were 61.2% of those killed, blacks were 34.7%, and Asians were 3.5%. Age The percentage of children under age 13 killed by a family member was larger than that group's percentage of the total U.S. population. In 2002 children under age 13 were 18.1% of the U.S. population and 23.4% of murder victims killed by a family member. By contrast, children under 13 were a smaller percentage -- 3.3% -- of nonfamily murder victims. Looking at it another way, among all victims of murder who were under age 13, nearly two-thirds were killed by a family member. Among victims age 13 or older, fewer than 1 in 5 were killed by a member of their family. An estimated 29.5% of the U.S. population in 2002 was between ages 35 and 54, while 46.7% of the victims killed by a spouse were within this age range. The average age of spouse murder victims was 41. The average age among sons or daughters killed by a parent was 7 years, and 4 in 5 victims killed by a parent were under age 13. Demographic characteristics of murderers Gender In 2002 nearly 9 in 10 murderers were male. Males accounted for 79.2% of family murderers and 92.7% of nonfamily murderers. Among offenders who committed murder against a spouse, 83.1% of the offenders were male; against a boyfriend or girlfriend, 74.6%; and against a stranger, 96.7% of the offenders were male. Race/Hispanic origin In about half of all murders in 2002, the offenders were white. Sixty-five percent of family murderers were white; an additional 30.7% were black; and 3.9% were some other race. Among nonfamily murderers, 49.2% were white, 48% were black, and 2.8% were some other race. Age Fewer than 1 out of 10 murderers were under age 18. About the same percentage of family murderers (5.5%) as nonfamily murderers (6.8%) were younger than 18. A larger percentage of spouse murderers (71.8%) were age 35 or older, compared to 45.2% of murderers who killed a boyfriend or girlfriend. In addition, 28.1% of spouse murderers were between 18 and 34, while 53.6% of offenders who killed a boyfriend or girlfriend were in this age range. Weapon use and family murder When an offender kills the victim, the weapon is usually a firearm, knife, or blunt object such as a club. Less frequent are murders that result from the offender's use of hands, fists, or feet. Murders can also involve the use of items that are not typically considered weapons, such as poisons, narcotics, or incendiary devices. In 2002 family murders were less likely than nonfamily murders to involve a firearm (50.1% versus 67.7%). Parents were the least likely type of family murderers to use a firearm (27.8%), compared to spouses (62.6%) or other family members (51%). The most common way a parent killed a son or daughter was by the use of hands, fists, or feet (43.7%). The use of a firearm in nonfamily murders was highest among stranger offenders (75.7%), compared to murders committed by friends or acquaintances (66.4%) and by boyfriends and girlfriends (47.2%). Of the 9,102 murders (with complete data on victim-offender relationship) in 2002, 207 were offenders who killed their parents (not shown in table). Firearms, knives, or blunt objects were used in about three-fourths of murders involving parent victims. Hands, fists, or feet were used to kill 16% of parent murder victims. The remaining 8% of parent murder victims, including 4% who were asphyxiated, were killed with other weapons. Number of victims and offenders in family murders About 3 out of 4 murders involved one offender and one victim in 2002. Murders in which one offender killed one victim described 84.3% of family murders and 73.7% of nonfamily murders. A single offender against a single victim was most characteristic of spouse murder and boyfriend/girlfriend murder. Of the 787 identifiable incidents of spouse murder, 90.6% involved a spouse killing his/her spouse and no one else. The comparable figure for the 668 identifiable incidents of boyfriend/ girlfriend murder was 92.7%. Multiple victims of a lone offender occurred most often in murders of sons or daughters by a parent. In the 500 identifiable incidents of parents killing their children, 18.8% involved one parent killing multiple victims (for example, his children, or his wife and one of his children). Family violence reported to police About the data in this section As the term is used throughout the following section, "violent crime" refers to five types of nonfatal violence: rape, sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault and simple assault. The seven tables in this section are all based on the personal accounts of victims who described violent victimizations occurring between 1998 and 2002. The NCVS documented these accounts in interviews with a nationally representative sample. The tables compare family violence to nonfamily violence with respect to the likelihood of being reported to police, the identity of the persons who did the reporting, reasons for not reporting, and the likelihood that reported offenses resulted in an arrest. Reporting family violence to police Of the 32.1 million violent victimizations that occurred between 1998 and 2002, 47.2% were reported to the police. Violence against family members was more likely to be reported to police than violence involving persons who were not family members. Of the 3.5 million family violence incidents, 59% were reported, compared to 45.7% reported of the 28.6 million crimes against persons who did not belong to the offenders' family. Both spouse abuse (61.7%) and violence against family members other than a spouse or a son or daughter (58.8%) were reported at higher rates than violence by a parent against a son or daughter (47.3%). Spouse violence (61.7%) was somewhat more likely to be reported than violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend (55.4%). Among the 28.6 million violent crimes involving nonfamily members, the type of violence most likely to be reported was violence between boyfriends and girlfriends (55.4%). The type of violence least likely to be reported was violence against friends and acquaintances (40%), which was reported less often than both boyfriend/girlfriend violence (55.4%) and stranger violence (48.9%). Types of crime and reporting rate differences Of the 32.1 million violent victimizations that occurred between 1998 and 2002, robbery and aggravated assault were the most likely to be brought to police attention. Police learned of 60.8% of the 3.2 million cases of robbery and 57.9% of the 6.4 million cases of aggravated assault. Sexual assault (31.8%) was the least likely type of crime to be reported to police. Overall, between 1998 and 2002, fewer than 4 out of 10 sex offenses -- either rape or sexual assault -- came to the attention of law enforcement. Fifty-nine percent of family violence crimes were brought to police attention. Among the 3.5 million crimes against family members, sex offenses (39.1%) were less likely to be reported to police than other types of crime. Robbery (70.6%), aggravated assault (63.3%), and simple assault (57.5%) were all reported more often. Of the total 1.4 million violent sex offenses that occurred between 1998 and 2002, approximately 1.3 million were against persons outside the offenders' families. Of these 1.3 million sex offenses that occurred between nonfamily members, those committed by a stranger were the most likely to result in police notification. Of stranger sex crimes, 46.4% were reported, compared to 35% of those committed by a friend or acquaintance and 29.8% of those committed by a boyfriend or girlfriend. Nearly two-thirds of all violence between 1998 and 2002 was simple assault (not in table). Simple assaults against a family member (57.5%) were more likely to be reported to police than simple assaults that involved offenders from outside the victims' family (40.4%). Similarly, authorities were notified about spouse- inflicted simple assaults (62%) at a higher rate than simple assaults by a boyfriend or girlfriend (53%). Demographic differences in reporting rates Gender In general, violent crimes against females were more likely to be reported to police than violent crimes against males. Between 1998 and 2002, 52.3% of all violent victimizations of females were reported to police, compared to 43% of those of males. The likelihood of family violence being reported to police did not differ significantly between male victims and female victims. Females' 60.1% reporting rate was not significantly greater than the males' 55.9% rate. For nonfamily violence, a larger percentage of crimes against females than against males was reported to police. Authorities were notified of about 50.5% of nonfamily violent crimes against females and 42.2% of those against males. Among violent victimizations by a friend/acquaintance, female victimizations were reported at a greater rate (45.6%) than those of males (35.2%). Reporting of stranger victimizations of females (54%) was also greater than that of males (46.5%). Race/Hispanic origin Between 1998 and 2002, a smaller percentage of violence against white victims was reported to police than violence against victims of other races (including Hispanics). The police were notified of 46% of violent crimes against white victims, compared to 50.3% of those against other races. Nonfamily violence against whites (44.4%) was less likely to be reported than nonfamily violence against other races (49%). Among the 2 million victims of violence by a boyfriend or girlfriend, crimes against white victims (50.4%) were significantly less likely to be reported to authorities than crimes against victims of other races (67.5%). The likelihood of police notification of stranger violence did not differ significantly between incidents involving white victims (48.1%) and those involving victims of other races (50.7%). Age Violent crimes against younger victims were less likely to be reported than violent crimes against older victims. Of the 32.1 million violent victimizations that occurred between 1998 and 2002, violence involving victims under age 18 (32%) and victims between ages 18 and 24 (44.7%) was reported at lower rates than violence involving victims in each of the other age categories. Among the 3.5 million family violence crimes, those involving the youngest victims were least likely to be reported. That is, violence by a family member against victims 18-24 (62.8%), 25-34 (63%), 35-54 (59.1%), and 55 or older (68.1%) were each reported at higher rates than family violence against victims under 18 (38%). Of the 28.6 million violent crimes against persons unrelated to the offenders, those involving older victims were generally more likely to be reported than those involving younger victims. Nonfamily violence against victims 25- 34 (55.9%), victims 35-54 (52.3%) and victims 55 or older (55.1%) were reported at higher rates than nonfamily violence against victims under 18 (31.7%) and victims 18-24 (43.1%). For each of the three types of nonfamily violence -- violence against boyfriends and girlfriends, violence against friends or acquaintances, and stranger violence -- no significant differences in the likelihood of notifying authorities were found between the age categories. Reporting rate differences in relation to weapon involvement Between 1998 and 2002, 25.7% of violent crime victims indicated that the offender had a weapon at the time of the incident. Just under three-quarters of violent crimes involved an offender who did not have a weapon of any sort. Violent crimes involving a weapon were more likely to be reported to police than those not involving a weapon. Of the 8.3 million violent crimes in which the offender had a weapon, 53.8% were reported to police. Among the remaining 23.9 million violent crimes not involving an offender with a weapon, 40% were brought to the attention of authorities. Reporting rates among family violence victims did not differ significantly between incidents that did and did not involve a weapon. This was true among all three categories of family violence. Among nonfamily violence incidents, those involving a weapon were more likely to be reported than those not involving a weapon. Of the nonfamily violence incidents in which the offender had a weapon, 58% were reported to police, compared to 41.2% of those not involving a weapon. Violence against boyfriends or girlfriends that involved a weapon (69.6%) was reported to police more often than boy/girlfriend violence without a weapon (52.7%). Similarly, friend/acquaintance violence involving a weapon was reported at a higher rate (51.6%) than friend/acquaintance violence not involving a weapon (36.9%), and weapon-involved stranger violence had a higher reporting rate (60.2%) than stranger violence not involving a weapon (43.5%). Reasons why violence was not reported to police An estimated 17 million violent crimes did not come to the attention of law enforcement officials between 1998 and 2002. These 17 million crimes were 52.8% of all violent victimizations that occurred during those years. The two most common reasons for not reporting violence to the police were that the incident was a "private/ personal matter" (22.8%) or that the incident was "reported to some other official" (19.5%). An additional 16.4% of victims indicated that the violence was considered "not important enough" to report, while 16.6% did not inform police for some "other reason." Approximately a third of the 1.4 million family violence victims who did not report the incident to police stated the reason for not reporting was that it was a "private/personal matter." A quarter said they did not inform police for some "other reason." Another 12% of nonreporting family violence victims said they did not report the crime in order to "protect the offender." Twenty-five percent of the 663,000 victims of spouse violence indicated that they did not notify the authorities because the incident was a "private/ personal matter." "Fear of reprisal" was indicated by 8.3% of nonreporting victims of spouse violence, and an additional 9.3% said they wanted to "protect the offender." Thirteen percent of spouse abuse victims indicated they did not report the crime because it was "not important to police." This percentage was higher than the corresponding percentage for violence by a parent against a son or daughter (3%), by other family members (6.3%), by boyfriends or girlfriends (5.5%), by friends or acquaintances (4.2%), and by strangers (7.7%). In 21.8% of unreported nonfamily violence cases, the incident was considered a "private/personal matter," while in another 20.9% it was "reported to some other official." Among nonreporting victims of boyfriend/girlfriend violence, 33.8% said they did not report the incident to police because it was a "private/personal matter." An additional 10.6% indicated "fear of reprisal," and 16.9% stated they wanted to "protect the offender." The 7 million victims of violence by a friend or acquaintance who did not report the crime to police most often stated that the incident was "reported to some other official" (29.4%). Twenty- three percent of nonreporting victims of stranger violence indicated that the incident was "not important enough" to report to police. The person who reported the crime to police Of the 32.1 million violent victimizations that occurred between 1998 and 2002, 15.2 million were reported to police. These 15.2 million violent crimes came to police attention from a variety of sources. For 54.4% of all reported violence, the person reporting the crime to police was the victim. An additional 10.9% were reported by other household members; 8.9% by an official other than the police; and 15.6% by someone else, such as a bystander, a relative, or an acquaintance. An estimated 13.8% of all reported violence between 1998 and 2002 was family violence. Of these 2.1 million cases of family violence that came to police attention, 67.4% were taken to the authorities by the victim. This was larger than the corresponding percentage for nonfamily violence (52.3%). The victim was the reporter in approximately three-quarters of reported spouse abuse. Of the approximately 15.2 million violent crimes reported to police, about 13 million (86.2%) involved nonfamily members. Of the 13 million reported nonfamily violence incidents, victims made up 52.3% of persons who contacted police. In 6.3% of cases of reported nonfamily violence, the police were at the crime scene at the time of the incident. Reported violent crimes that resulted in an arrest Arrests were made in about a third of all reported violent crimes between 1998 and 2002. Of the 15.2 million violent crimes of which authorities were notified, 31.6% resulted in an arrest. Overall, police were less likely to make an arrest for robbery (25.9%) than for other types of violent crime that came to their attention. The probability of arrest for family violence was higher than for nonfamily violence. Among family violence crimes reported to police, 35.9% resulted in arrest, compared to 30.8% of nonfamily violence crimes. Among the 2.1 million family violence crimes reported to police, robbery (20%) was less likely to result in an arrest by police than both aggravated assault (39%) and simple assault (36.8%). Police were as likely to make an arrest for spouse violence (35.5%) as they were for violence by a parent against a son or daughter (37.9%) or for violence against other family members (35.9%). Family violence recorded by police About the data in this section Statistics shown in this section pertain to violent crimes that came to the attention of police in 2000. Data for these statistics come from the FBI's National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), which compiles detailed information on those crimes recorded by police. At least 1 police agency in each of 18 States and the District of Columbia provided NIBRS data in 2000. These NIBRS agencies constituted about 25% of all law enforcement agencies in the country and collectively had jurisdiction over approximately 16% of the U.S. population and 13% of the crime. Family violence compared to nonfamily violence recorded by police In jurisdictions covered by NIBRS agencies, police recorded nearly 750,000 victims of violent crime in 2000. The statistics in this section pertain to the 634,096 victims whose relationship to the offender was recorded. Of the 634,096 victims, a third were victimized by a family member. The remaining two-thirds were victimized by a nonfamily member. Spouses represented the second largest group of victims of violence in police data. Offenders' spouses comprised 17.4% of all violence victims; boyfriends or girlfriends, 16.7%; and sons or daughters, 4.4%. The largest group -- friends and acquaintances of offenders -- accounted for nearly 4 in 10 victims of police-recorded violence. One in 8 violent offenses brought to police attention involved a stranger. More than 207,000 individuals were victims of crimes committed by family members and recorded by police in NIBRS agencies in 2000. Of these family violence victims, more than half (110,279) were spouses of the offender, about an eighth (27,783) were sons or daughters, and the remaining third were parents (23,652), siblings (21,164), or other family members such as grandparents or in-laws (24,693). Of the 426,525 victims of nonfamily violence, more than half (242,233) were victimized by a friend or acquaintance, and a quarter (106,009) by their boyfriend or girlfriend. Types of family violence recorded by police Simple assault was the most frequent violent crime known to police in NIBRS agencies in 2000, and accounted for 61.8% of all violence. Examples of simple assault include grabbing, pushing, or hitting, with no serious injury inflicted and no weapon present. Police statistics revealed that simple assault accounted for a higher proportion of violent crimes committed by family members as compared to nonfamily members. Simple assault constituted 72.7% of family violence and 56.5% of nonfamily violence. Within specific relationship categories, simple assault comprised 77.1% of violent crimes against spouses, 74.9% of violence against parents, and 74.2% of crimes against boyfriends or girlfriends. An estimated 40.9% of the violent crimes against strangers were simple assaults. Aggravated assault, the second most common violent offense recorded by police in NIBRS agencies in 2000, accounted for about 1 out of every 7 violent crimes. Aggravated assault represented a smaller proportion of violent crimes between family members compared to nonfamily members. Aggravated assault accounted for 12.5% of crimes of violence within families and 16.7% of violent crimes involving nonfamily members. It constituted 11.3% of crimes committed against spouses, 16% against siblings, and 13.3% against boyfriends or girlfriends. Violent crimes committed against strangers showed the highest percentage of aggravated assaults (20.8%). Intimidation was recorded almost as frequently as aggravated assault, according to police data in 18 States and the District of Columbia in 2000. Examples of intimidation include verbal threats, threatening gestures, stalking, and bullying. The threat may be physical, emotional, psychological, or sexual in nature, and may be made in person, in writing, over the telephone, or by some other conduct. A lower percentage of family violence was due to intimidation compared to nonfamily violence. Intimidation accounted for 9.3% of violence against family members and 15.4% of violence against nonfamily members. Sons or daughters of offenders had the lowest proportion of intimidation (4.2%); those victimized by a friend or acquaintance had the highest (18.9%). Sex offenses -- rape and sexual assault -- comprised about 5% of all violence in police statistics. As a percentage of all violent crimes, sex offenses varied by the relationship of the victim to the offender. Sex offenses accounted for nearly 13% of violent crimes committed against sons or daughters and less than 1% of those committed against spouses. Other violence (kidnaping and justifiable homicide) accounted for a small percentage of violent crimes recorded by police. This "other" violence made up 0.7% of family violence and 0.4% of nonfamily violence. Murder (including nonnegligent manslaughter) comprised 0.2% of all family and nonfamily violent crime in police data. This percentage was relatively consistent across all relationship categories. ------------------------------------------ Measuring family violence In this section of the report, the extent of family violence is measured with police statistics. In 2000 police recorded about 200,000 incidents of family violence in NIBRS agencies. These 200,000 incidents accounted for 33% of all violence. Earlier in the report, family violence was measured by survey interviews with crime victims in the NCVS. The NCVS estimated that 11% of violence was family violence. The reasons for the dissimilarity of the estimates -- 33% versus 11% -- are discussed in the Appendix, page 71. -------------------------------------------- Location of family violence recorded by police Most violence recorded by police in NIBRS agencies in 2000 occurred in a residential setting, usually a house or apartment. Almost two-thirds of all violent crimes took place in a residence. A fifth of all violence was committed in a public place such as on a highway or road, and nearly a tenth in a commercial establishment such as a bar, nightclub, or restaurant. The vast majority of family violence occurred in a residence. About 87% of instances of police-recorded family violence took place in a house or apartment. Few acts of family violence occurred in a public place (6.7%), in a commercial establishment (2.8%), or at some other location (2.7%). The proportion of violent crimes occurring at all types of locations was relatively consistent across all family relationships. Slightly more than half of all nonfamily violence took place in a residential setting. A residence was the site of roughly four-fifths of violent crimes against a boyfriend or girlfriend and a half of all violence against a friend or acquaintance. However, less than a fourth of violent acts against a stranger occurred in a residence. A higher proportion of police-recorded violence against friends or acquaintances and against strangers was committed outside the home, as compared to other relationships. More than 41% of violence against a stranger, and 29% of that against a friend or acquaintance, took place in a public setting. A relatively high percentage of violence against strangers took place on a highway or road (25.5%). Parking lots, eating or drinking establishments, and retail stores were each the site for about 10% of stranger violence. Demographic characteristics of family violence victims recorded by police Gender The majority of victims of all violent crimes recorded in police statistics were female. Moreover, females accounted for 70.7% of victims of family violence. This proportion was higher than that of nonfamily violence victims (54.9%). Overall, females comprised 60.1% of the victims of all police-recorded violence in NIBRS agencies in 2000. Violence between intimate partners showed the highest proportion of female victims. Females made up 80% of spouse violence victims and 82% of those victimized by boyfriends or girlfriends. Nearly half of the victims of violence committed by friends or acquaintances were female. By contrast, the majority of the victims of stranger violence were male (65.4%). Race/Hispanic origin According to police data, most of the victims of family violence were white. Whites made up 69.7% of family violence victims, blacks 24.7%, and Hispanics 4.7%. Less than 1% of family violence victims were persons of other races. Just over 70% of spouse violence victims were white and 23% were black. Of individuals victimized by boyfriends or girlfriends, just under 60% were white and 36% were black. Close to three-fourths of victims who were a parent of the offender were white, and a fifth were black. Among sibling victims, more than three-fifths were white, and three-tenths were black. Victims of Hispanic origin as a percentage of total victims did not vary across the relationship categories. Percentages of American Indian/Alaska Native and Asian/Pacific Islander victims also showed little variation by type of relationship. Age Police statistics indicated that most victims of violence were age 18 or older. Approximately three- fourths of victims of family and nonfamily violence were between ages 18 and 54. Twenty-one percent of all violence victims were under age 18. The proportion of victims between ages 25 and 54 was highest for parents (79%) and spouses (78%), followed by boyfriends or girlfriends (59%). Young adults between ages 18 and 24 constituted almost 35% of boyfriend and girlfriend victims compared to slightly over 18% of victims of spouse violence. Violence at the hand of a parent had the highest proportion of juvenile victims (76.5%) followed by siblings (36.5%) and friends or acquaintances (31.2%). The percentage of juvenile victims of violence committed by strangers was lower (15%). Nine percent of victims of family violence were children 12 years of age or younger; under 7% of victims of nonfamily violence were children in this age range. Persons victimized by a parent showed the highest proportion of victims under age 13 (41.5%), followed by those victimized by another family member such as a grandparent or in-law (16.4%), sibling (13.3%), and friend or acquaintance (10.5%). The percentage of stranger violence against child victims age 12 or younger was lower (4.4%). In general, adults 55 or older made up the smallest percentage of victims. These older adults comprised less than 5% of family violence victims and less than 3% of nonfamily violence victims. More than 15% of parents abused by a son or daughter were over age 54. Injury to victims of family violence recorded by police Nearly half of all violence victims sustained an injury. Police data in 18 States and the District of Columbia in 2000 revealed that 47% of victims of violence were injured. About 9% sustained a major injury, including death, sexual assault, and severe lacerations, and 38% had minor injuries such as cuts, abrasions, and bruises. Within families, about 7% of victims had major and 42% had minor injuries; 10% of victims who were not related to the offender suffered major injuries and nearly 36% had minor injuries. Degree and type of injury varied by the relationship of the victim to the offender. A higher proportion of sons or daughters (15.7%), siblings (10.5%), and other family members (16.9%) sustained major injuries compared to spouses (3.1%), parents (3.4%), and boyfriends or girlfriends (5.5%) of the offender. About half the victims of spouse (45.8%) and boyfriend/ girlfriend violence (48.2%) sustained minor injuries. Fewer than 1 in 3 victims of stranger violence had minor injuries. Demographic characteristics of family violence offenders recorded by police Gender More than three-fourths of offenders were male in all violent crime recorded by police in 18 States and the District of Columbia in 2000. Males accounted for 75.3% of family violence offenders and 78.1% of nonfamily violence. In violent crimes against a spouse, 80% of the offenders were male; against a boyfriend or girlfriend, 81.9%; and against a stranger, 85.6% of the offenders were male. Violent crimes against a son or daughter had the lowest percentage of male offenders (67.3%) and the highest of female offenders (32.7%). Race The majority of violent offenders were white (defined here as both Hispanic and non-Hispanic). Police statistics indicated that nearly 73% of family violence offenders were white, slightly more than 26% were black (also defined as both Hispanic and non-Hispanic), and 1% were of other races. For violence between nonfamily members, whites accounted for about 60% of offenders, blacks nearly 39%, and other races slightly under 1%. The percentage of black and white offenders varied depending on the relationship between the victim and the offender. In violent crimes in which the victim was the offender's spouse, 73.7% of offenders were white and 25.2% were black; for boyfriend or girlfriend victims, 57.6% of offenders were white and 41.6% were black. The proportion of white offenders was highest when the victim was the offender's parent (76.5%), and lowest when the victim was a stranger (54.5%). The proportion of black offenders was highest when the victim was a stranger (44.5%), and lowest when the victim was the offender's son or daughter (22.2%). Age The majority of violent offenders were 18 years of age or older, according to police data. More than four- fifths of all violent offenders were between ages 18 and 54; nearly a sixth were younger than 18. Offender age varied depending on the relationship between the victim and offender. About 81% of spouse offenders were between ages 25 and 54. For violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend, about 64% of offenders were in this age range. Young adults between ages 18 and 24 comprised 31.9% of offenders of violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend and 14.6% of offenders against a spouse. For parents committing an act of violence against a son or daughter, fewer than 10% of offenders were under age 25; approximately 25% were between 25 and 34; and nearly 60% were between ages 35 and 54. Violent acts against a parent had the highest proportion of juvenile offenders (offenders less than age 18). As a percentage of all offenders committing violence against a parent, 50.6% were under age 18. Juveniles under 18 accounted for 31.8% of offenders committing an act of violence against a sibling, 26.1% against a friend or acquaintance, and 13.3% against a stranger. The proportion of children age 12 or younger as violent offenders was relatively low in police-recorded data. Children under 13 accounted for 4.9% of offenders of violence against siblings, 4.5% against parents, 5.8% against friends or acquaintances, and 1.4% against strangers. Adults 55 or older accounted for less than 4% of family violence offenders and under 3% of nonfamily violence offenders. Weapon use in family violence recorded by police Offenders did not use a weapon in the majority of violent crimes recorded by police in 18 States and the District of Columbia in 2000. Weapons were used in fewer than 1 in 5 violent crimes. A smaller percentage of family violence involved a weapon as compared to nonfamily violence. Some type of weapon was used in 15.5% of violence against family members and 20.7% of that against nonfamily members. Weapon use varied by the relationship of the victim to the offender. For victims who were a friend or acquaintance of the offender, nearly 1 in 5 violent crimes involved a weapon; for stranger crimes, more than 1 in 3 violent crimes involved a weapon. Five percent of violence recorded by police in NIBRS jurisdictions involved a firearm. Firearms were used in 1.7% of violent crimes committed against a spouse, 1.5% of those committed against a boyfriend or girlfriend, 4.7% against a friend or acquaintance, and 17.9% against a stranger. The use of hands, fists, feet, and teeth was found in nearly 63% of all violence recorded in police statistics. The proportion of violent crimes in which these types of personal weapons were used was highest when the victim was a boyfriend or girlfriend (73.4%), spouse (72.4%), son or daughter (72.4%), or sibling (70.2%). Personal weapons were used in just under 57% of violent crimes against a friend or acquaintance and in 47% of violence against strangers. Number of victims and offenders in family violence recorded by police Most incidents of violence -- whether family or nonfamily -- involved one offender and one victim. A single offender committing a violent crime against a single victim described 76.9% of family violence and 71.2% of nonfamily violence, according to police data in 18 States and the District of Columbia in 2000. A single offender against a single victim was most characteristic of spouse violence and boyfriend/girlfriend violence. Of the 110,279 incidents of police-recorded spouse violence, 84.4% involved a spouse committing a violent crime against his/her spouse and no one else. The comparable figure for the 106,009 incidents of boyfriend/girlfriend violence was 85.2%. Multiple offenders victimizing a lone victim was most characteristic of stranger violence. Of the 78,283 incidents of stranger violence, 13.8% fit that description. In incidents of parents victimizing their children, the most common situation was one parent committing a crime against one son or daughter (61.9%). How often both parents victimized their children is not shown. Incidents of multiple offenders victimizing one person accounted for 4.2% of all incidents of parents victimizing their offspring, but the offenders in these multiple-offender incidents were not always both parents. In some cases they may have been one parent and, for example, that parent's boyfriend or girlfriend. Violent crimes with multiple victims accounted for 33.9% of violence by a parent against his/her children, 29.6% of violence between siblings, and 28.6% of violence against other family members. In incidents of sons or daughters victimizing their parents, 13.6% involved one son or daughter committing the crime against multiple victims. How often these multiple victims were both parents is not shown. As presented, "multiple victims" was defined to include both parents or just one parent and other persons. Arrests for family violence recorded by police The vast majority of arrests were made for crimes of assault. Of all arrests for violent crime recorded in police data, 68.4% were for incidents involving simple assault, 19.4% were for aggravated assault, and 5.6% were for intimidation. Simple assaults accounted for a higher proportion of arrests in family violence (77.4%) compared to nonfamily violence (62.3%). Family violence had lower proportions of arrests for aggravated assault (15.5%) and intimidation (3.9%) compared to nonfamily violence (22% and 6.8%, respectively). Violence against a spouse showed the highest proportion of arrests for simple assault (81.6%), followed by violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend (78.1%), and a parent (76.7%). Among stranger violence, simple assault showed the lowest proportion of arrests (47.4%). Arrests for aggravated assault, as a percentage of all arrests, were lowest when the victim was the offender's spouse (13.7%) and highest when the victim was a stranger (26.8%). Intimidation comprised less than 3% of all arrests for violence against a son or daughter or a sibling, and nearly 9% of arrests for violence against a friend or acquaintance. The percentage of arrests for sex offenses was highest for victims who were the offender's son or daughter (7.8%) or other family member (9.9%). Demographic characteristics of persons arrested for family violence recorded by police Gender The vast majority of persons arrested for family violence were males. According to police statistics in 18 States and the District of Columbia in 2000, males made up 77.1% of all suspects arrested for family violence. Males also predominated among arrestees for nonfamily violence, comprising 79% of persons arrested. The predominance of males as arrestees was greatest for stranger violence. Among all persons arrested for stranger violence in 2000, 84% were male. Males made up about 81% of persons arrested for violence against their spouse, and about 81% of those arrested for a violent crime against their boyfriend or girlfriend. Overall, females were 21.7% of persons arrested for a violent crime. The female percentage was greatest for violent crimes by sons and daughters against their parents. Specifically, females made up 30.3% of persons arrested for a crime of violence against a parent. Race/Hispanic origin Among persons arrested in 2000 for family violence, whites comprised 68.9% of the total; blacks, 24.3%; and Hispanics, 5.6%. Among those arrested for nonfamily violence, the racial composition was white, 58.1%; black, 34.8%; and Hispanic, 6%. The category with the largest percentage of white arrestees was violence against parents. Among persons arrested for that crime, whites were 74.5% of the total. The category with the lowest percentage of white arrestees was stranger violence (55.7%). Blacks' highest percentage among arrestees was for stranger violence (36.7% of arrestees for that crime). Blacks' lowest percentage was violence against their parents (20.7%). Age Most (51%) of the sons and daughters arrested for a violent crime against their parents were children under age 18. Most (61.9%) of the parents arrested for violently victimizing their sons or daughters were ages 35-54. Demographic characteristics of victims of family violence in arrests recorded by police Gender The majority of victims of violent crimes in which an arrest was made were female. Females accounted for 61% of victims of all violence for which there was an arrest. Police data from NIBRS agencies in 2000 indicated that nearly 72% of victims of family violence and 54% of victims of nonfam-ily violence which resulted in an arrest were female. The proportion of female victims of violence that ended in arrest varied by the relationship between the victim and the offender. About 80% of victims who were the spouse, boyfriend, or girlfriend of the offender were female, while about 55% of victims who were the son or daughter or sibling of the offender were female. Males accounted for nearly three-quarters of the victims of violence committed by a stranger who was arrested; they comprised more than half of the victims of violence committed by a friend or acquaintance. Race/Hispanic origin Police statistics revealed that in violent crimes for which there was an arrest, 69.2% of the victims were white, 24.8% were black, and 4.9% were Hispanic. Among arrests for violence committed by a son or daughter against their parent, 76.2% of victims were white, 19.6% black; and 3.4% Hispanic. Comparable figures for violence against a sibling were white, 63.8%; black, 29.9%; and Hispanic, 5.2%. Of violence that resulted in an arrest and comparing all categories of victims, other family members had the lowest proportion of white victims (60.9%), and the highest percentages of black (32.1%) and Hispanic victims (6.2%). Violence against strangers resulting in an arrest showed the highest proportion of white victims (77.3%) and the lowest of black victims (17.6%). Age The majority of victims of violence that resulted in arrest were adults. More than three-fourths of these victims were between ages 18 and 54, and about a fifth were under 18. For the majority of arrests for violence by a parent against a son or daughter, the victim was under age 18. Victims between ages 13 and 17 accounted for 37.6% of arrests for violence against a son or daughter, and victims under age 13 accounted for 35.7%. By contrast, the victim was under age 13 in 3.5% of arrests for violence against a stranger. Sons or daughters arrested for victimizing a parent had the highest proportion of arrests for violence against victims 55 or older (16.6%). Arrest rates for family violence recorded by police Arrests were made in less than half of the violent crimes recorded by police, according to police statistics for NIBRS agencies in 2000. Just under 40% of all violence resulted in an arrest. The arrest rate for family violence is higher than for nonfamily violence. Nearly half of all family violence crimes had an arrest compared to about a third of nonfamily violence. Arrests were made in over half of recorded violent crimes committed against spouses (52.7%) and against parents (52.3%). The rate of arrest was somewhat lower for violence against a sibling (46.6%), boyfriend or girlfriend (46.1%), and son or daughter (41.7%). Violent crimes with the lowest arrest rate were those in which the victim was a friend or acquaintance of the offender (31.1%) or a stranger (34%). The rate of arrest also varied by type of offense. Nearly 7 in 10 murders and 1 in 2 aggravated assaults resulted in an arrest compared to roughly 1 in 4 robberies and sex offenses and 1 in 6 crimes of intimidation. Nearly 80% of murders committed against a parent or sibling resulted in arrest. The arrest rate for murder was lowest when the victim was a spouse of the offender (49.6%), a son or daughter (60.3%), or a stranger (65.5%). Arrest rates for aggravated assault were highest when thevictim was the offender's spouse (63.9%) or parent (64.3%). Arrest rates were lowest for this crime when the victim was the offender's friend or acquaintance (43.9%) or was a stranger (43.9%). Arrest rates by demographic characteristics of offenders for family violence recorded by police During a criminal investigation, law enforcement may learn information about an offender, even if that offender is not arrested. For example, an assault victim tells the police that his assailant was a white male between ages 25 and 35. While the police may not make an arrest in this case, they nevertheless record the information provided about the offender as a suspect. Information recorded in NIBRS on offender demographic characteristics indicated that 75.3% -- 156,300 offenders -- of suspected family violence offenders were male. Among violent crime recorded by police in NIBRS agencies in 2000, 50%--78,150 offenders -- of the 156,300 males suspected were arrested by police. Gender For violence committed by males, the arrest rate was higher for family violence compared to nonfamily violence. Half of all police-recorded family violence in which the suspected offender was male resulted in an arrest. For nonfamily violence committed by males, the arrest rate was slightly more than a third. Overall, two-fifths of male offenders were arrested for violence recorded by police in 18 States and the District of Columbia in 2000. More than half of all males suspected of violence against their spouse or parent were arrested. The same was true for females. Arrest rates for female offenders were slightly lower than those for male offenders for every relationship category except two. Females had a slightly higher arrest rate for violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend and against a stranger. Race/Hispanic origin Compared to other races, American Indian/Alaska Natives showed the highest arrest rates for violent crime. More than half (55.2%) of all suspected offenders of this racial group were arrested. Asian/Pacific Islanders were arrested at a rate of 46.5%. Arrest rates were lowest for blacks; 35.5% of suspected black offenders were arrested for a violent crime, compared to 40.5% of white offenders and 50.3% of offenders of other races. Blacks suspected of committing violence against a stranger were arrested at a rate of 3 in 10. In comparison, 1 in 2 blacks accused of committing spouse abuse were arrested. Arrest rates were not available for arrestees of Hispanic origin because these data were not recorded for suspected offenders. Age Arrest rates were highest for offenders between ages 35 and 54. Approximately 50% of suspected family violence offenders in this age group were arrested; for nonfamily violence, nearly 40% were arrested. Offenders under 13 years of age had the lowest arrest rates (30.7%). However, 50% of the children under 13 who were suspected of violence against their parents were arrested. The group with the highest arrest rate for this crime belonged to the age category 35-54 (55.9%). Arrest rates by demographic characteristics of victims of family violence recorded by police Gender Overall, arrest rates were slightly higher for violent crimes in which the victim was female rather than male, according to police data in 18 States and the District of Columbia in 2000. Arrest rates for violence against female family members were also slightly higher than those against male family members. However, for crimes against nonfamily members, arrest rates were higher when the victims were male. The difference in arrest rates for crimes against female victims compared to male victims is small for family violence. Arrests were made in 49.5% of crimes in which the victim was a female family member and 47.3% of those against a male family member. However, arrest rates were slightly lower when the victim was the offender's daughter or sister, compared to those when the victim was the offender's son or brother. For police-recorded nonfamily violence, arrest rates were higher for crimes against males (35.7%) compared to females (34.8%). For violence in which the victim and offender were strangers, arrest rates were higher for crimes against male victims (37.5%) compared to female victims (26.8%). Race/Hispanic origin Arrest rates were highest for violent crimes against American Indian/Alaska Native victims, followed by violence against Hispanic victims. Arrests were made in 54.3% of recorded violent crimes against American Indian/ Alaska Natives and in 45.3% of violence against Hispanics. Police-recorded data from NIBRS agencies in 2000 showed that arrest rates were lowest for violence against blacks (35%). Arrest rates were higher for family violence compared to nonfamily violence for each racial category of victims. Nearly 55% of recorded family violence against Hispanics and 50% of that against whites resulted in an arrest. The corresponding arrest rates for nonfamily violence were 40% for Hispanic victims and 37% for white victims. For black victims, arrests were made in 45% of family violence and 30.9% of nonfamily violence. Crimes committed by strangers against blacks had the lowest arrest rates -- less than 25%. Age Among all violent crimes, arrest rates were highest (42.3%) for crimes against victims ages 35-54. For family violence, roughly half of all crimes committed against victims in each of the age categories age 18 or older resulted in arrest. For nonfamily violence, recorded crimes against victims between ages 25 and 34 had the highest arrest rate (37.5%). Arrest rates were lowest for both family and nonfamily violence against victims under age 13. Across nearly all relationship categories, arrest rates were lowest for crimes against victims in this age category. Weapon possession at time of arrest for family violence recorded by police Few offenders (3.9%) arrested for violence were armed at the time of arrest. A lower percentage of persons arrested for family violence were armed at the time of arrest (3%) compared to those arrested for nonfamily violence (4.6%). The relationship categories with the lowest proportion of armed arrestees occurred when the victim was the spouse (2.5%) or the boyfriend or girlfriend (2.4%) of the offender. Violence against a stranger (7.1%) was the relationship category with the largest percentage of offenders armed at the time of arrest. The second largest percentage of armed arrestees occurred among those accused of violence against a friend or acquaintance (5.1%). These two groups also accounted for the highest proportion of arrestees carrying firearms (4% and 2.1%, respectively). Disposition of juvenile arrestees of family violence recorded by police The majority (73.7%) of juvenile arrestees under age 18 were referred to another authority such as another police department, a juvenile court, some other court, a probation department, or a welfare agency. About 1 in 4 juvenile arrestees were handled by the arresting agency. These juveniles were usually released to a parent or released with a warning. State prosecution of family assault About the data in this section To compare the prosecution of family and nonfamily violence defendants, this section drew from a survey of adults charged with felony assault, the most frequent type of violent felony committed within families. The comparison could not be made for the full range of violent crimes because the needed data are not widely available. In this section, "family assault" and "nonfamily assault" refer to the approximately 1,500 defendants charged with felony assault during May 2000 in the State courts of 11 large counties. The felony assault cases were from the BJS survey State Court Processing Statistics. In this section, the basis for distinguishing between family and nonfamily assault was the existing statutes in the 11 counties. All 11 had at least 1 statute that specified penalties for family assault. Defendants were treated here as having been charged with family assault if the statute they were charged under was specific to assault against a "spouse," "family" or "household" member, or "domestic partner." Family assault as a proportion of all assaults Of the estimated 1,517 felony assault cases filed in the State courts of 11 counties during May 2000, about a third of the defendants were charged with family assault. The remaining two-thirds of defendants were either accused of nonfamily assault or their relationship to the victim was not specified. Demographic characteristics of family assault defendants Gender Males charged with felony assault included 33.8% that were against a family member, compared to 25% of females charged with assault. The difference was not statistically significant, however. Race/Hispanic origin Family assaults made up 40.1% of all assaults that Hispanics were charged with committing. That percentage was greater than the corresponding figures for whites (28.7%) and blacks (28.2%). Age Family assaults accounted for more of the assaults that defendants over age 34 (39.2%) were charged with committing than those under age 35 (28.4%) (not shown in table). The average age of family assault defendants (33 years) was about the same as that of defendants charged with nonfamily assault (31 years). Criminal history of family assault defendants Criminal history records of the defendants provided information on previous arrests and convictions. Although these records show prior arrests and convictions, they do not show whether any of these arrests or convictions were for family assault. Of the approximately 1,500 felony assault cases, the criminal histories were more serious for family assault defendants than for those charged with nonfamily assault. Seriousness is measured in terms of prior arrests and convictions. Prior arrests While the number of defendants with a prior arrest for family assault could not be determined, information on the number of defendants who had previously been arrested for some type of crime was available. Defendants charged with family assault (83.7%) were more likely than nonfamily assault defendants (73.5%) to have at least one prior arrest for a felony or misdemeanor. Among defendants charged with family assault, an estimated 13.2% had 1 prior arrest for some type of crime; 24% had from 2 to 4 prior arrests; 25.5%, from 5 to 9 prior arrests; and 21%, 10 or more. Family assault defendants (61.4%) did not differ significantly from those charged with nonfamily assault (56.1%) in the percentage having at least one prior felony arrest for any type of crime. About 39% of family assault defendants had no prior felony arrest record. Prior convictions Although the number of defendants with a prior conviction for family assault could not be determined, information on the number of defendants who had previously been convicted for some type of felony or misdemeanor was available. Approximately three-fourths of family assault defendants had been previously convicted of a felony or misdemeanor, compared to three-fifths of nonfamily assault defendants. An estimated 18.4% of family assault defendants had 5 or more prior convictions, including 6.5% who had 10 or more. About a third of assault defendants, both family (32.3%) and nonfamily (33.9%), had at least one prior felony conviction. An estimated 3.5% of family assault defendants had five or more prior felony convictions. Criminal justice status at time of arrest Some defendants had an active criminal justice status at the time of their arrest, such as having been released pending disposition of a prior case or being on parole supervision in the community. The criminal justice status was not necessarily for family assault. The likelihood of having an active criminal justice status at the time of the arrest was about the same whether the defendant was charged with family (38.3%) or nonfamily assault (31.7%). At the time of their arrest, about 28% of family assault defendants were on probation and almost 5% had been on pretrial release pending disposition of other charges. Pretrial release of family assault defendants One of the first decisions a court makes in a case is whether to release or detain the defendant before the case is disposed. By posting bail or agreeing to nonfinancial conditions (such as not posting bail but being held liable for the amount should the defendant fail to appear in court), a defendant can be allowed to return to the community. Before releasing a defendant, the judge considers the defendant's risk of "pretrial misconduct," such as failing to appear in court when ordered, violating conditions of the release (such as failing a drug test), or being arrested for a new crime. Family (48.6%) and nonfamily (47.7%) assault defendants did not differ in the likelihood of being released pending case disposition. Of the 493 family assault defendants, 253 (51.4%) were held in jail until their case was disposed. The vast majority of these 253 detained defendants usually had an opportunity to post bail, but for one reason or another, did not do so (235 of the 253 or 93%). About 80% of family assault defendants were either released (31.5%) or held on bail (47.7%) by the court. Among family assault defendants who had a bail set, three-fifths could not post the amount required to be released (47.7% / 79.2% = 60%). The median bail amount for defendants charged with family assault was $35,000, and the mean was $66,000. Time from arrest to release Among all 728 defendants charged with assault and released pending case disposition, over 90% of releases occurred within 1 month of arrest. Twenty-five percent of those charged with family assault were released within 1 day of arrest. Conduct of released defendants Defendants released after being charged with family assault (20.8%) were not significantly more likely than those released after being charged with nonfamily assault (26%) to commit some type of misconduct before the court disposed of their case, such as being rearrested for a new crime. Outcome of family assault cases Time from arrest to adjudication A greater percentage of family assault cases (69.6%) than nonfamily assault cases (36.8%) were adjudicated within the first 3 months following the arrest. About 9 in 10 assault cases, both family and nonfamily, were adjudicated within 1 year of arrest. Adjudication outcome Criminal cases are adjudicated several different ways. They result in no conviction when the case is dismissed by the court or the defendant is acquitted by a judge or jury. Convictions are the result of a guilty plea or the defendant being found guilty at a trial. Other outcomes include deferred adjudication based on the defendant's good behavior or pretrial diversion into programs such as substance abuse treatment or counseling. The probability of being convicted of a felony was about the same for family (48.1%) and nonfamily (45.3%) assault defendants (whose cases were adjudicated within 1 year) in the 11 counties. Moreover, the probability of being convicted of some type of felony or misdemeanor was greater for family assault defendants (71.3%) as compared to nonfamily assault defendants (61%). Twenty-five percent of defendants charged with family assault were not convicted, including about 24% not prosecuted because the charges were dismissed. An additional 4% of family assault cases had other outcomes, such as pretrial diversion, and were not prosecuted. Time from conviction to sentencing About 3 in 4 of defendants convicted of either family or nonfamily assault were sentenced within 30 days of conviction. Almost half of the defendants convicted of family assault received their sentence within a day. Sentencing outcome State courts sentenced over 80% of persons convicted of family (86.3%) and nonfamily (81.3%) assault to either prison (confinement in a State facility usually for more than a year) or jail (confinement in a local facility usually for a year or less). While most incarceration sentences for family assault were to jail (58.9% / 86.3% = 68%), a majority of persons convicted and sentenced to incarceration for nonfamily assault were sent to prison (50.7% / 81.3% = 62%). Forty-five percent of persons sent to prison for family assault received a sentence of more than 2 years, compared to 76.6% of nonfamily assault offenders sent to prison. The average State prison sentence for family assault was about 38 months. Among defendants convicted of family assault and sentenced to jail, the mean sentence was almost 7 months, and the median was 6 months. About 4 in 5 jail sentences for family assault were for more than 3 months. Federal prosecution of family violence About the data in this section The Federal Government has jurisdiction over violent crimes between family members that occur on Indian reservations, military bases, and other such Federal entities. The victim-offender relationship for these crimes of violence cannot be identified in the automated databases of Federal justice agencies, so that this section has no statistics on them. The databases of Federal justice agencies do contain identifiable data on two types of "domestic violence," and these two come closest to providing information on family violence cases in the Federal justice system: 1. Interstate travel to commit domestic violence ("interstate domestic violence") 2. Possession of a firearm by a person previously convicted of domestic violence ("firearm-related domestic violence"). This section presents information on the two categories of Federal offenders. Tables 7.1 and 7.2 give statistics on both types. Table 7.3 gives data just on interstate domestic violence because firearm-related domestic violence cases are not identifiable in the data source for this table. As the term is used in this section, domestic violence includes one form of family violence -- spouse violence -- and one form of nonfamily violence -- intimate partner violence. The statistics are from the Federal Justice Statistics Program (FJSP) and cover the 3-year period from 2000 to 2002. How much domestic violence comes to the attention of Federal prosecutors Over the 3 years from 2000 to 2002 a total of 757 suspects were referred to U.S. attorneys for alleged violations of Federal domestic violence laws. The 757 represented 4% of the 18,653 Federal suspects referred to U.S. attorneys for alleged violent crimes from 2000 to 2002. Of the 757, 83.2% (630) were suspected of firearm-related domestic violence. They were suspected of possessing a firearm in violation of Federal statutes that make firearm possession a Federal felony for anyone with a prior misdemeanor conviction for domestic violence. The remaining 16.8% (127) were suspected of interstate domestic violence: interstate travel to commit domestic violence. Of the 630 suspects referred to U.S. attorneys for a firearm-related domestic violence offense, 406 were suspected of violating the Federal law that prohibits firearm possession by someone with a prior misdemeanor domestic violence conviction. The remaining 224 were suspected of violating the law that prohibits firearm possession by someone subject to a protection order. Of the 127 suspects referred to U.S. attorneys for an interstate domestic violence offense, 99 were investigated for interstate domestic violence/stalking, and 28 for violation of a protective order where interstate travel facilitated the Offense. ------------------------------------------------ Domestic violence under Federal criminal law Interstate domestic violence offenses Domestic violence was made a Federal felony in 1994 with the passage of the Violence Against Women Act or VAWA (Pub. L. No. 103-322). This legislation targeted cases in which an abuser crosses State or tribal lines to violate a protection order or to injure, harass, or intimidate another person. These laws provide recourse for domestic violence cases where movement across State lines makes State prosecution difficult and where State penalties are inadequate. The Violent Crime Against Women Act of 2000 (Pub. L. No. 106-386) amended the VAWA to include cyber-stalking and to remove several obstacles to Federal prosecution. Firearm-related domestic violence The U.S. Congress also amended the Gun Control Act in 1994 and 1996 to prohibit firearm possession by persons with certain histories of domestic violence: firearm possession by a person subject to a protection order or by a person convicted of a misdemeanor domestic violence offense. ----------------------------------------------- Referring agencies From 2000 to 2002 the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) accounted for the largest number of domestic violence referrals to U.S. prosecutors: 504. The 504 consisted of 503 firearm-related domestic violence cases plus 1 interstate domestic violence case. ATF was the referring agency for 79.9% of cases of firearm- related domestic violence but less than 1% of interstate domestic violence cases. The agency responsible for most of the referrals for interstate domestic violence was the FBI, accounting for 72.4% of the total from 2000 to 2002. Federal court outcome Court outcomes for firearm-related domestic violence cases could not be described from the Federal court data used here. Outcomes could only be documented for the 52 defendants adjudicated in Federal courts between 2000 and 2002, whose most serious adjudicated offense was interstate domestic violence. Of the 52 defendants, 47 (90.4%) were convicted of interstate domestic violence (not in a table). Of these 47, 37 defendants pleaded guilty (79%), and 10 defendants were convicted at trial (21%). Five cases were dismissed. Characteristics of Federal defendants convicted of domestic violence Most of the 47 defendants convicted of interstate domestic violence from 2000 to 2002 were U.S. citizens (95%), had a prior adult conviction (80%), were male (96%), between ages 31 and 40 (46%), white (72%), and non-Hispanic (95%). Court sentence Between 2000 and 2002, 43 of the 47 (91%) defendants convicted of interstate domestic violence received a prison sentence (not in a table). The mean prison term imposed was 7.5 years (the median prison term imposed: 5 years). Prison terms ranged from 1 to 25 years, largely depending on the level of harm inflicted on the victim. Three defendants received probation (5 years each of probation supervision). Family violence offenders in prison About the data in this section Statistics in this section pertain to violent offenders in State prisons nationwide in 1997. The statistics were based on State prisoner data from the BJS Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities, 1997. (Federal prisoner data were not included in these analyses.) The survey involved face-to-face interviews with a nationally representative sample of prison inmates. Among other things, sampled inmates were asked what crime they were in prison for and whether their victim was a member of their own family. Based on what inmates told interviewers, it is estimated that, at the time of the survey in 1997, State prisons held 494,349 inmates whose offense was a violent crime. Information on the victim's relationship to the offender was obtained on 458,148 of the total 494,349 violent prisoners. The statistics in this section pertain to these 458,148 inmates. Inmates in State prison for family violence Of the 458,148 men and women in State prisons nationwide for a violent crime in 1997, 14.6% were there for a violent crime against a member of their family. The remaining 85.4% were men and women whose violent crime was against a nonfamily member. Inmates in prison for spouse abuse comprised 3.8% of all prisoners incarcerated for a violent crime. More inmates were in prison for a violent crime against their children (26,876 inmates, or 5.9% of the total) than were there for a violent crime against their spouse (17,440 inmates, or 3.8% of the total). Offenders who committed their crime against a stranger made up nearly half of all inmates in State prisons for a violent crime in 1997. The next most frequent category consisted of those in confinement for a violent crime against a friend or acquaintance (33%). Type of violent crime for which offenders were imprisoned The leading type of violent crime for which family violence offenders were in State prisons was a sex offense. Sex offenders were nearly a half of all family violence offenders in State prisons. The leading type of violent crime for which nonfamily offenders were imprisoned was robbery, accounting for nearly a third of their total. Among prisoners incarcerated for a violent crime against a stranger, nearly half were robbers. Sex offenders comprised 78.4% of all the men and women in prison for a crime against their son or daughter. An additional 7.6% murdered their child. Those convicted of assault made up about 20% of both family and nonfamily violence offenders in State prisons. But assaulters made up 39.5% of perpetrators of spouse violence. Location of family violence Based on offender self-reports, an estimated 44.5% of violent offenses occurred in either the victim's home, offender's home, or a home shared by the victim and offender . Offenses also occurred in public places (32.9%) -- in a school, on the street, in a parking lot, on public transportation, in a station or depot, or in a park -- and on commercial property (21.3%) - a bar, restaurant, gas station, store, office, or factory. The location of violence differed for family and nonfamily victims. Almost all family violence occurred in a home belonging to either the victim or the offender, or a residence shared by the victim and offender. A total of 89.1% of family violence crimes committed by State prison inmates occurred at home. Among nonfamily offenders, 36.9% of the incidents occurred at home. Eighty-four percent of State prison inmates who victimized their spouse and 94.3% who victimized their son or daughter committed the offense at home. When victims of violent crime were strangers, 22% of the incidents occurred in a residence. Demographic characteristics of family violence victims, based on prisoner accounts Gender Most inmates in prison for family violence were incarcerated for a violent crime against a female, while most in prison for nonfamily violence were there for a crime against a male. Offenders in prison for a violent crime against a female made up 78.2% (71.9% + 6.3% = 78.2%) of the nearly 67,000 incarcerated family violence offenders, compared to 44.4% (32.7% + 11.7% = 44.4%) of the approximately 391,000 nonfamily violence offenders. Husbands in prison for violently victimizing their wives were 89.2% (80.9% + 8.3% = 89.2%) of all the inmates in prison for spouse violence in 1997. Among inmates in prison for a violent crime against their offspring, 85.3% (79.7% + 5.6% = 85.3%) victimized their daughters. Female victims also predominated among inmates in prison for violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend. Of the approximately 23,000 imprisoned offenders whose violent crime was against a boyfriend or a girlfriend, 91.1% (83% + 8.1% = 91.1%) were in prison for a crime against a female. Race/Hispanic origin Forty-nine percent of the victims of inmates in prison for a violent crime were white. An additional 29% were black, and 13.3% were Hispanic. Approximately 56.7% of the victims of family violence offenders were white. The comparable percentage among nonfamily violence victims was 47.9%. Age Of the crimes for which family violence offenders were imprisoned, most were against a child (a person under age 18). Of the 67,000 imprisoned family violence offenders, 52.6% were in prison for a violent crime against a child. A violent crime against a child accounted for 12.3% of the approximately 391,000 offenders imprisoned for violence against a nonfamily victim. In violent crimes in which the victim was the prisoner's daughter or son, an estimated 91.3% of prison inmates victimized a child under age 18, and 60.6% involved a child under age 13. Injuries to family violence victims About 70.6% of State prison inmates serving a sentence for a violent crime injured their victim during the incident. Injuries included death, rape, bullet and knife wounds, broken bones, internal injuries, being knocked unconscious, and bruises and cuts. A third of the inmates killed their victim, and a fifth raped or sexually assaulted their victim. An additional 8.1% wounded their victim by a bullet, knife, or other sharp object. State prison inmates incarcerated for a violent offense against a family member were more likely than inmates committing a crime against a nonfamily member to have injured their victim. About 9 in 10 offenders who victimized their family injured that family member. In comparison, almost 7 in 10 inmates whose victim was not a family member injured their victim. State prison inmates whose victim was a family member were more likely than inmates whose victim was not family to have inflicted sexual harm on their victim. Half who said their victim was a family member had raped or sexually assaulted that person. About 1 in 7 inmates who victimized a nonfamily member had attacked the victim sexually. Prison inmates convicted of nonfamily violence (34.5%) were more likely than inmates convicted of family violence (27.6%) to have killed their victim. Victims of spouse violence were just as likely to have died from their injuries as to have recovered. About half of the inmates in State prison for a violent offense against their spouse killed their victim. In contrast, about a third of inmates serving sentences for a violent crime against a boyfriend or girlfriend indicated their victim died. When State prison inmates victimized their daughter or son, about 8 in 10 of these victimizations involved rape or sexual assault. Another 10.1% had killed their son or daughter. Demographic characteristics of inmates in State prison for family violence Gender The majority of incarcerated perpetrators of family violence were males. Males made up 93.2% of all persons in State prison in 1997 for a violent crime against a family member. Females were 6.8% of inmates in prison for committing a violent crime against a family member and were 3.3% of inmates in prison for nonfamily violence. Race/Hispanic origin According to prisoner data, whites comprised 58.3% of men and women in prison for family violence. Blacks were 25.6%, and Hispanics were 12.9%. Whites formed the majority (58.3%) of those in prison for family violence; blacks, the majority (50.8%) for nonfamily violence. Age The ages provided by surveyed prisoners were their ages at the time of the survey, not at the time of their offense. Their age when they committed the crime was not recorded. The typical inmate had been in prison over 4 years when they were surveyed. Of the approximately 67,000 inmates in State prison for family violence, 57.1% were between ages 35 and 54 when interviewed. By contrast, of the approximately 391,000 inmates in prison for nonfamily violence, a smaller percentage -- 36.2%-- were in this age range at the time of the survey. Nearly a quarter of prisoners whose victim was a nonfamily member were young adults (ages 18 to 24). Among prisoners incarcerated for family violence, 8.7% were young adults. Weapons used or possessed in family violence Among State prison inmates incarcerated for a violent offense, 42.5% had or used a weapon in the incident -- a firearm, knife or other sharp object, a blunt object such as a rock or club, or some other type of weapon . Twenty- five percent of inmates had or used a handgun, and another 9.1% were in possession of a knife or other sharp object. Relatively few State prison inmates whose victim was a family member possessed or used a weapon, compared to inmates whose victim was not a family member. When inmates committed violence against a family member, 22.9% used or carried a weapon; when inmates attacked someone who was not a family member, a larger percentage -- 45.8% -- had a weapon with them. A smaller percentage of family violence offenders than nonfamily violence offenders were in possession of a firearm at the time of the incident. About 14.2% of inmates whose victim was a family member used or carried a firearm, while 33.5% with nonfamily victims had a firearm. Whether an inmate who victimized a family member was in possession of a weapon varied by the type of relationship between the victim and the offender. Inmates who victimized their children generally did not use a weapon. About 4.8% were carrying a weapon when they committed a violent crime against a son or daughter. In comparison, 44.5% of inmates who committed a crime against a spouse or ex-spouse had a weapon, as did 28.1% who committed their offense against other family members. Firearms were generally the favored weapon of State prison inmates, as 30.7% of the 458,000 State prison inmates had or used a firearm while committing the offense for which they were serving a prison sentence. About 29.8% of the inmates who had committed a crime against their spouse had a firearm, and 24.7% of offenders who committed boyfriend/ girlfriend violence used or possessed a firearm at the time of the incident. Drug and alcohol use by family violence offenders Of State prison inmates sentenced to serve time for a violent crime, 23.2% were drinking alcohol at the time of the incident, 9.6% were using drugs, and 19.5% were under the influence of both alcohol and drugs. A smaller percentage of family violence offenders than nonfamily violence offenders were drinking or on drugs when they committed the offense for which they were in prison. Approximately 43.5% of State prisoners victimizing a family member and 53.8% victimizing nonfamily members were using drugs or alcohol at the time they committed the offense. Alcohol use did not vary significantly by the offender's relationship to his/her victim. About 38.9% of State prison inmates whose victim was a family member and 43.4% whose victim was a nonfamily member were under the influence of alcohol when they committed their offense. Number of victims and offenders in family violence Generally, State prison inmates were alone in committing the violent crime for which they were serving a sentence. Of the approximately 458,000 imprisoned violent offenders, 74.4% were offenders who had acted alone (59.3% + 15.1% = 74.4%). Lone offenders made up a larger percentage of family violence offenders than nonfamily violence offenders. About 95% of family violence offenders were the only offender (79.1% + 15.9% = 95%), compared to 70.9% of inmates who committed offenses against persons who were not family members (55.9% + 15% = 70.9%). Spouse violence and boyfriend/girlfriend violence were almost exclusively against a single victim. Ninety percent of spouse violence and 88% of boyfriend/girlfriend violence was directed at a single victim. Among inmates in State prison for family violence, the most frequent type of incident involved one offender and one victim. About 79.1% of family violence offenders acted alone against one victim. The comparable figure among inmates in prison for nonfamily violence was 55.9%. Prior sentences of inmates in prison for family violence Prisoners incarcerated for a violent offense reported their prior history of sentences to incarceration or probation, both as juveniles and as adults. Over two-thirds of violent offenders had served a prior sentence to probation or incarceration in a jail, prison, juvenile, or other detention facility. Inmates who were currently in prison for a violent offense against a member of their family were not as likely as other violent offenders to have a history of prior sentences. About 6 in 10 prison inmates serving a sentence for a violent crime against a family member had served a prior sentence, while 7 in 10 whose victim was a boyfriend, girlfriend, friend, acquaintance, or stranger had a record of previous offenses. Least likely to have a prior sentence were prison inmates who abused their son or daughter. About half had a previous sentence. About 58.7% of inmates sentenced for a violent crime against a spouse and 63.4% of those sentenced for violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend had served a sentence prior to their current stay in prison. In comparison, 73.5% who victimized a stranger had served a previous sentence. ------------------------------------------------- Convicted family violence offenders in State and Federal prisons and in local jails At midyear 2003, 109,300 inmates were serving a sentence for family violence in a State or Federal prison or local jail. At the same time about 5 times as many (597,500) were incarcerated for a crime against someone who was not a family member. About 15.5% of violent offenders in Federal, State, and local correctional facilities had committed a violent crime against someone in their family. The bulk of incarcerated family violence offenders were housed in State correctional facilities -- 77% in State prisons, 1.6% in Federal prisons, and 21.3% in local jails. More persons in a correctional facility in 2003 were held for an offense against a daughter or son (39,500) than against a wife or husband (33,100) or another family member (36,800). -------------------------------------------------- Family violence offenders in jail About the data in this section The data in this section pertain to convicted violent offenders in local jails nationwide in 2002. Information about them comes from the Survey of Inmates in Local Jails, 2002. The survey consisted of face-to-face interviews with a nationally representative sample of jail inmates. Statistics in this section are based on those inmates who were in jail in 2002 as a result of a conviction for a violent crime, an estimated 96,359 convicted offenders. The survey recorded the relationship between the victim and the offender for 85,505 out of the total 96,359 (88.7%). The statistics summarized in this section are based on those 85,505 jail inmates. The number of inmates in local jails for family violence Of the 85,505 convicted violent offenders confined in a local jail in 2002, 18,667, or 21.8%, had victimized a member of their family. The remaining 78.2% had committed their crime against some other person, such as a boyfriend or girlfriend, other friend, an acquaintance, or a stranger. An estimated 10.1% of convicted violent offenders harmed or threatened their spouse and another 20% their boyfriend or girlfriend. An additional 4.6% were jailed for committing an offense against one of their children. About a third victimized a stranger, and a quarter, a friend or acquaintance. Type of violent crime for which convicted local jail inmates were incarcerated Men and women convicted of assault comprised the majority of persons incarcerated for committing a crime against a family member. Approximately 60.1% of local jail inmates convicted of a violent crime against a family member had been found guilty of assault. About 53.7% who victimized someone who was not a family member were convicted of assault. The next most likely offense committed by family violence offenders in local jails was a sex offense (including both rape and sexual assault). An estimated 23.7% had been convicted of a sex offense. Approximately 12.5% of inmates convicted of a violent offense against a nonfamily member were in jail for a sex offense. Of convicted jail inmates who victimized their children, 65.8% were convicted of a sex offense, and 5.7% of parents or stepparents had killed their child. Location of family violence Family violence crimes committed by jail inmates generally occurred at home -- the victim's home, the inmate's home, or a home they shared. About 85.2% of jail inmates convicted of an offense against a family member committed the offense at home, particularly if the victim was the inmate's spouse (90.9%) or child (87.2%). About 18.5% of inmates committed their offense at home if the inmate was harming or threatening a stranger. Demographic characteristics of family violence victims, based on jail inmate accounts Gender Victims of family violence committed by convicted local jail inmates were predominantly female. Over three- quarters of family victims of local jail inmates convicted for a violent crime were female (74.1% + 4.5% = 78.6%). About half of victims of nonfamily violence were female (44.4% + 7.5% = 51.9%). Among violent crimes committed by convicted local jail inmates in which the victim was a spouse or a boyfriend or girlfriend, the vast majority of victims were wives or girlfriends. Females were 96% (91.5% + 4.5% = 96%) of spouse abuse victims and were 92.6% (88.5% + 4.1% = 92.6%) of victims of boyfriend/ girlfriend violence. Race Inmates in local jails in 2002 convicted of violence against a family member reported that 45.8% of their victims were white. Another 23.6% were black, and 29.8% were some other race. Age Victims of family violence by convicted local jail inmates were generally under the age of 35. An estimated 28.5% of these victims were 17 or younger. Another 34.4% (10.8% + 23. 6% = 34.4%) were between ages 18 and 34, making almost two- thirds of family violence victims age 34 or younger. About 15.7% of the victims of local jail inmates convicted of nonfamily violence were under 18. Another 51.1% of victims were between ages 18 and 34 (22.7% + 28.4% = 51.1%). Of local jail inmates who victimized their children, 9 out of 10 indicated the children were under age 18. Injuries to family violence victims Of inmates convicted of a violent crime against a family member, 55.3% injured their victim. About 50.7% of nonfamily violence victims were injured. When inmates victimized their child, 87.1% of those children sustained an injury. An estimated 34.9% of inmates convicted of spouse abuse injured their wife or husband. ---------------------------------------------- Restraining orders among jail inmates convicted of family violence, 2002 Restraining orders are court orders directing a named person or persons to cease certain described behavior. A restraining order is sometimes called a peace bond, a protective order, a no contact order, or a domestic restraining order. Of jail inmates convicted of a violent crime, 27.2% had been under a restraining order at some time in their life. An estimated 8.5% were under a restraining order at the time they were admitted to jail. Among convicted jail inmates, 44.9% of those convicted of family violence had been subject to a restraining order at some point in their life. About 18.1% were under a restraining order at the time of their admission to jail. Comparatively, 22.2% of jailed nonfamily violence offenders had been under a restraining order, and 5.9% were under an active protective order at admission to jail. An estimated 60.9% of jail inmates convicted of spouse abuse had, at some time in their life, been under a restraining order sought by a current or former spouse. A quarter of spouse abuse offenders were under a no contact order at the time of their current admission to jail. Of the 17,081 jail inmates convicted of violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend, 35.4% indicated they had been under a protective order sought by a current or former boyfriend or girlfriend at some time in their life. At the time of admission to jail, 15% of these offenders were subject to an active restraining order. ------------------------------------------- Demographic characteristics of inmates in jail for family violence Gender Local jail inmates convicted of a violent crime were predominantly male, accounting for 92.8% of offenders. Among jail inmates convicted of family violence, 90.4% were male, and 93.5% of inmates convicted of nonfamily violence were male. Race Of convicted inmates in jail for family violence, 45.7% were white and 28.4% were black. In cases in which inmates reported their victim was not related to them, 30.2% were white and 43.5% were black. Approximately 42.2% of convicted inmates in jail for spouse abuse were white. The comparable percentage for inmates in jail for violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend is 39.2%. An estimated 22.9% of offenders convicted of stranger violence were white, and 46.7% were black. Age Surveyed local jail inmates were asked to indicate their age. The age they provided was the age at the time of the survey, not at the time of their offense. Jail inmates convicted of family violence were older than inmates convicted of nonfamily violence. About 50.1% who victimized a family member were 35 or older, compared to 32.2% of inmates convicted of violence against a nonfamily member. Of jail inmates who were convicted of an offense against a spouse, 57% were 35 or older, as were 36.2% who offended against a boyfriend or girlfriend and 61.5% in jail for a violent crime against their child. Weapons used or possessed in family violence About 11.6% of jail inmates convicted of violence against a family member had or used a weapon at the time of the incident. Comparatively, 23.6% of jailed nonfamily violence offenders had a weapon. An estimated 6.1% of convicted jail inmates had a weapon when committing an offense against their wife or husband, 1% against a son or daughter, and 9.8% against a boyfriend or girlfriend. Jail inmates whose victim was a stranger had or used a weapon in 32.7% of stranger violence incidents. Drug and alcohol use by family violence offenders Among jail inmates convicted of a violent crime, 38.4% (26.2% + 12.2% = 38.4%) were using alcohol at the time of the incident. Among inmates in jail for family violence, 37% (31.9% + 5.1% = 37%) were drinking when they committed the violent act for which they were incarcerated. The percentage for inmates convicted of nonfamily violence was similar -- 38.8% (24.6% + 14.2% = 38.8%) were using alcohol when committing a violent crime against a boyfriend or girlfriend, a friend or acquaintance, or a stranger. Drug use was measurably lower than alcohol use for inmates who threatened or hurt their family. An estimated 13.1% (8.0% + 5.1% = 13.1%) of inmates who had been convicted of a violent crime against a family member had been using illegal drugs, compared to 37% who were drinking alcohol. Of the 67,000 inmates who committed a crime against someone other than a family member, 24% (9.8% + 14.2% = 24%) were using drugs at the time of the incident. Drugs played the largest role in stranger violence. About 31.1% (11.6% + 19.5% = 31.1%) of convicted local jail inmates who victimized a stranger were using illegal drugs when they committed the crime. Number of victims and offenders in family violence The majority of violence committed by convicted jail inmates involved one offender and one victim. Among inmates in jail for family violence, 71.9% acted alone against one family member. The comparable percentage for inmates convicted of nonfamily violence was 70.2%. Among incidents of nonfamily violence by local jail inmates, 15.6% involved multiple victims. Multiple victims also characterized 23.8% of stranger violence. A total of 19.6% of stranger violence incidents involved a lone offender victimizing multiple victims, such as when one man assaults two other men outside a restaurant. Methodology Reported and unreported family violence Statistics comparing reported and unreported nonfatal family violence to reported and unreported nonfatal nonfamily violence come from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) for 1998 to 2002. The statistics are based on data gathered from residents living throughout the United States, including persons living in group quarters, such as dormitories, rooming houses, and religious group dwellings. Crew members of merchant vessels, Armed Forces personnel living in military barracks, and institutionalized persons, such as correctional facility inmates, were not included in the scope of this survey. Similarly, U.S. citizens residing abroad and foreign visitors to this country were excluded. With these exceptions, individuals age 12 or older living in units selected for the sample were eligible to be interviewed. In addition to single incidents of criminal victimization, the NCVS records data on series victimizations. A series victimization is defined as six or more similar but separate crimes which the victim is unable to recall individually or describe in detail to an interviewer. Survey respondents who indicated they were series victims were asked to provide details for the most recent incident. In annual BJS reports on the NCVS, series victimizations are excluded from the published victimization estimates. However, because repeat victimization is an important aspect of family violence, series crimes were included in these analyses, counted as "1" victimization to represent all the incidents in the series. NCVS data in this section are based on a nationally representative sample of the general population age 12 or older who experienced a violent victimization that occurred between January 1998 and December 2002. Data were aggregated over this 5-year period to obtain sample sizes large enough to detect differences between family and nonfamily violence victims, as well as to detect differences between family and nonfamily violent crimes based on the characteristics of the incident. Additional information on weighting, along with other methodological details, can be found in the BJS Internet-only report Criminal Victimization in the United States -- Statistical Tables, 2002 (NCJ 200561). Fatal family violence To compare family murder to nonfamily murder, this report uses data from the FBI's 2002 Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR). Murder as defined here includes murder and nonnegligent manslaughter which is the willful killing of one human being by another. Not included in the analyses are deaths caused by negligence, suicide, or accident; justifiable homicides; and attempts to murder. SHR data are based solely on police investigation. Not all law enforcement agencies which report offense information to the FBI also submit supplemental data on murder. At the time of analysis, the most recent SHR data contained information on 12,940 of the 16,204 murders reported in the FBI's Uniform Crime Report. To account for the total number of homicides, the SHR data were weighted to match national and State murder estimates prepared by the FBI. All victim-based analyses are adjusted in this manner. While many law enforcement agencies report supplemental data on murder, one reason why much of the data concerning victim-offender relationship may not be reported is because no suspects were identified. In 2002, SHR data recorded information on the relationship of the victim to the offender for 56.2% (9,102) of the 16,204 murders committed that year. The dataset utilized in this report was compiled by James Alan Fox, the Lipman Family Professor of Criminal Justice at Northeastern University. The dataset, along with additional details about imputation and estimation procedures, is available from the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data , please refer to ICPSR 4179. After the analysis for this report was completed, the SHR database was updated to include information on an additional 2,117 murders, bringing the total number of murders included in the database to 15,057 of the 16,204 murders in the United States in 2002. Family violence recorded by police To compare family violence recorded by police to nonfamily violence recorded by police, this report utilizes official police statistics reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 2000. Law enforcement agencies can report official police statistics to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting System in one of two ways: 1. the Summary reporting system 2. the Incident-based reporting system (NIBRS). Under the Summary system, law enforcement authorities aggregate the number of incidents by offense type and report these totals to the FBI on a monthly basis. Under the NIBRS system, agencies provide an individual record for each reported crime, including detailed information regarding the victim(s) and offender(s) involved, characteristics of the incident, and information on any arrests made in connection with the incident. In this regard, NIBRS represents a more comprehensive and detailed crime reporting system, with the ability to capture a wide range of information on specific incidents. To compare the characteristics of family violence to nonfamily violence, only cases with incident dates during calendar year 2000 were included in the analysis. In addition, only incidents from law enforcement agencies officially certified by the FBI to report NIBRS data were included. Currently, no agencies serving jurisdictions with populations of one million or more are certified to report NIBRS data. In 2000, agencies from 18 States and the District of Columbia submitted NIBRS data, representing 16% of the U.S. population and 13% of crime. Additional methodological details can be found on the BJS website , as well as at the Incident-Based Reporting Resource Center . State prosecution of family assault To compare the prosecution of family and nonfamily violence defendants, this report uses data from the BJS data collection State Court Processing Statistics (SCPS). The most recent SCPS study collected data for 14,877 felony cases filed during May 2000 in 40 large counties selected to represent the estimated 54,590 felonies filed in the Nation's 75 most populous counties during that month. Results of that study and information regarding sampling and other methodological details are available in the BJS publication Felony Defendants in Large Urban Counties, 2000, NCJ 202021, December 2003. Data from all 40 counties were not used to compare the case processing of family violence to nonfamily violence. Since assault was the only crime in the 2000 SCPS data to have specific statutes that identified family violence, other violent crimes (such as murder, rape, or robbery) were excluded from the analysis. To be in this study, a county also had to meet two criteria: 1. The county had an estimated 10 or more assault defendants charged under a family or domestic violence statute. 2. The county had at least 17% of its assault defendants charged with committing family or domestic violence. A total of 11 counties met the selection criteria. For instance, Travis County, Texas, had an estimated 16 family violence cases which accounted for 25% of the 64 assault cases filed in that county during May 2000. Within the selected counties, a sample of 637 cases was statistically weighted to represent 1,517 family and nonfamily assault defendants. Although the estimated 1,517 cases were less than 3% of the 54,428 felony cases filed in the Nation's 75 largest counties in May 2000, demographic characteristics of both cohorts were similar. Where family assault defendants were compared to nonfamily assault defendants in this section, sampling error was taken into account. All differences discussed were statistically significant at the .05 level. Federal prosecution of domestic violence The source of data for statistics on Federal prosecution of domestic violence is the BJS Federal Justice Statistics Program database covering the years 2000 to 2002. The database is presently constructed from source files provided by the U.S. Marshals Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, the United States Sentencing Commission, and the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. A description of the source agency data files, along with other methodological details, can be found in the methodology section in the BJS Internet-only document Compendium of Federal Justice Statistics, 2002 (NCJ 205368). Family violence offenders in prison Information about offenders in prison for family violence were obtained from BJS's 1997 Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities. From June through October, 1997, a nationally representative sample of inmates in State prisons were interviewed about their current offense and sentences, criminal histories, family and personal backgrounds, gun possession and use, prior drug and alcohol use and treatment, educational programs, and other services provided while in prison. Data and documentation with additional details are available from the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data . Please refer to ICPSR 2598. Family violence offenders in jail The 2002 Survey of Inmates in Local Jails provides nationally representative data on persons held in local jails including those held prior to trial and convicted offenders serving sentences in local jails or awaiting transfer to prison. Data in the survey include the individual characteristics of jail inmates; current offenses, sentences and time served; criminal histories; jail activities, conditions and programs; prior drug and alcohol use and treatment; and health care services provided while in jail. In the last Survey, completed in 1996, a representative sample of 6,000 inmates were interviewed. The sample for the 2002 survey was selected from 3,365 jails housing 558017 males and 73,224 females. The dataset and documentation with additional details about the survey will be available from the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data . Appendix Discrepant findings from two different ways of measuring family violence The extent of family violence in the United States is measured two different ways in this report. One way -- through the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) -- is based on survey interviews with samples of the U.S. population. The other way -- through the FBI's National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) -- is based on statistics compiled by police. NCVS data summarized in this report indicated that family violence makes up 11% of all violence (both reported to police and unreported), but police statistics summarized in this report indicated that family violence makes up nearly 33% of all police- recorded violence. No firm explanation for this apparent discrepancy is offered in the report. Presumably the discrepancy is caused by a host of factors. The discussion that follows identifies some of them, not necessarily the most important ones. One factor pertains to the willingness of victims (and others) to report crime to police. If family violence is more likely than nonfamily violence to be reported to law enforcement authorities, the family violence percentage in police statistics will tend to be larger than the percentage in the statistics for all violence (reported and unreported). To check that possibility, reporting rates for family and nonfamily violence were compared. Results indicated that family violence (59%) is more likely than nonfamily violence (46%) to be reported to police. While the difference is not large enough to fully account for the 11%-versus-33% discrepancy between NCVS and police statistics, results do suggest that a difference in reporting between family and nonfamily violence is a contributing factor. A second factor pertains to the fact that the police statistics on family violence used here are not directly comparable to the NCVS statistics in terms of geographical coverage. That is, the police statistics are based on data from agencies reporting in 18 States and the District of Columbia, while the NCVS statistics are for the entire United States. If the family violence percentage in the 18 States and the District of Columbia happens to be much larger than other States, using these jurisdictions to compare to the NCVS will create the appearance of a greater discrepancy than may actually exist. A third factor pertains to the handling of "series" victimizations in the analysis of the NCVS data. The 11% family violence percentage from NCVS data was based on an analysis that treated each "series" victimization (6 or more crimes of a similar nature that the victim is unable to recall individually) as a single victimization. Since family violence series victimizations comprised 17% (rather than 11%) of all violent series victimizations, treating each series victimization as 6 or more victimizations (rather than 1) would tend to raise the family violence percentage above 11%. To illustrate, when the family violence percentage was re-computed, this time treating each series using the actual number of incidents (up to 20) indicated by the victim, the percentage rose to 12.5%. A fourth factor pertains to the possibility that the NCVS undercounts family violence to a greater extent than nonfamily violence. If so, that would make the family violence percentage look lower than it actually is. The little research on the undercount that has been done -- notably, a small study of assault victims whose victimization was reported to police in San Jose, California, and a national study of victims who went to hospital emergency rooms for their injuries -- compared undercounts between family and nonfamily violence. Findings from both studies suggest that the NCVS undercounts family violence to a greater extent than nonfamily violence. The two studies are summarized below. San Jose study of known assault victims In January 1971, a sample of victims of assault was drawn from the records of the San Jose Police Department. These known victims were interviewed and asked whether they had been a victim of crime at any time in 1970. The victims and their interviewers were not told that the researchers wanted to determine to what extent known assault victims tell interviewers about recent victimizations. Results suggested that family assault victims were less likely than nonfamily assault victims to tell interviewers about their victimization. While 78% of 18 family assault victims did not mention being a victim of family violence, the comparable percentage for 62 nonfamily assault victims was lower: 29%. The original purpose of the San Jose study was to determine the effects of the passage of time on the recall of criminal victimizations. The survey design emphasized overall reporting issues, not the specific reporting of family violence. Hence, one limitation of the study is the small sample size. Of 126 sampled victims of assault, 18 family assault victims and 62 nonfamily assault victims were located and agreed to participate, a 63.5% response rate. Another limitation pertains to the fact that the questionnaire used in the study was more similar to the pre-1993 NCVS questionnaire than the one in use today. Consequently, the San Jose study results may be more relevant to the pre-1993 version than today's questionnaire. The pre-1993 version was replaced with one that was specifically designed to reduce undercounting of family (and domestic) violence. There is some evidence that the redesign may have succeeded in reducing the undercount. In 1991 (the last full year of interviews using the old questionnaire), family violence victims made up 7.3% of all violence victims (8% if series victimizations totaling 3 are counted as 3 crimes rather than 1; 4 counted as 4; and 5 counted as 5). In 1993 (the first full year using the redesigned questionnaire), the percentage was 10.2%. Hospital emergency room study While results of the San Jose study only shed light on the extent to which police-reported family violence (family violence that was brought to police attention) is mentioned in NCVS interviews, results of another study may shed light on the extent to which victims tell interviewers about both reported and unreported family violence of a particularly serious nature. In this other study, two national numbers were compared: 1. from the NCVS, the total (reported and unreported) estimated number of family violence victims who said they went to a hospital emergency room for treatment for their injuries in 1994 2. from a national survey--the Study of Injured Victims of Violence (SIVV) -- the total (reported and unreported, presumably) estimated number of family violence victims whose injuries brought them to hospital emergency rooms for treatment in 1994. All other things being equal, the two numbers should be the same if injured family violence victims tell NCVS interviewers about any incidents that lead to emergency room treatment. In fact, SIVV recorded far more emergency room admissions in 1994 than the NCVS, suggesting that the NCVS undercounts victims of serious family violence. The SIVV number of emergency room admissions for family violence (179,000) was found to be over 5 times the number recorded by the NCVS (33,300). By comparison, the SIVV number of emergency room admissions for nonfamily violence (775,000) was 1.6 times greater than the NCVS-estimate (471,400), suggesting that the NCVS undercounts particularly serious types of family violence to a greater extent than nonfamily violence. The relevance of the SIVV study is limited by the fact that its findings pertain to victims who were injured and went to an emergency room. Such victims are a small percentage of all family violence victims. Furthermore, the statistics for the NCVS-documented victims of family violence (who went to emergency rooms) may be unreliable because they are based on a small sample. Also, the SIVV study did not document how many victims had, and how many had not, reported the crime to police. Presumably, the SIVV study included some of both. End of file 06/07/05 ih