Coming off a year where domestic violence deaths fell to a 20–year low, Minnesota saw a disturbing increase in the number of domestic violence-related deaths in 2013.
The 2012 Femicide Report showed that the state was moving in the right direction in preventing domestic assault deaths, as the 19 reported incidents marked a 20-year low. Unfortunately, the number of deaths from domestic violence nearly doubled in 2013, as there were 37 reported cases.
This year’s Femicide Report said the state can’t let those who died be forgotten.
“Our challenge to the community is not to let these deaths go unnoticed but rather to use these brutal murders as a springboard for action,” the report said.
Disturbing Trends
The 2013 Femicide Report documented numerous domestic assault statistics. Some of the findings can be found below:
- 24 women and seven men were killed by current or former partners. Six friends or family members were also killed as a result of domestic violence.
- 15 of the 24 women were killed after the women left or as they were trying to leave a relationship. The report said the most dangerous time for battered women is when they try to end the relationship.
- The perpetrator committed suicide after killing the victim in about 50 percent of cases, much higher than the national murder-suicide average.
- 17 of the 37 murders were committed with firearms.
The Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women, the group who creates the annual Femicide Report, said the last point was one area where they’d like to see the government intervene.
“When there is a history of domestic violence, we should be looking at the question of access to firearms,” the report said.
Minnesota lawmakers will soon vote on two new pieces of legislation aimed at keeping domestic violence victims safe. The first proposed law would give victims the right to be notified of an offender’s location after they are released from prison, and the second bill would increase the ability of police to arrest suspected abusers after they have fled the scene of an alleged crime.
Rebeckah Moses, program manager for the WCBW, said the proposed legistlation is a step in the right direction, but more changes are needed.
“Safety must be a priority and recognized as a core issue at the Legislature and beyond,” said Moses. “We are all impacted: in our workplaces, schools, homes, courts and community.”
Related source: PostBulletin.com
