In The News

Domestic violence stats decline
By Renee Nadeau
Friday, December 29, 2006 - Updated: 07:19 AM EST
Boston Herald

Domestic violence in the United States has dropped more than 50 percent in 12 years, according to new federal statistics.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics show that in 1993, there were about 5.8 incidents of nonfatal violence for every 1,000 Americans over 12. By 2004, that number had fallen to 2.6, the agency said.

The statistics also show that homicides fell by about 30 percent, from 2,269 in 1993 to 1,544 in 2004.

Some experts attribute the decline to better training for police and more funding for prosecution, two key elements of the 1994 Violence Against Women Act. Investigators increasingly are better trained to handle abuse cases.

But Toni K. Troop of Jane Doe Inc. of Massachusetts, said that while she is cautiously optimistic about the findings, they may be misleading: “The source of the numbers and the questions asked have a huge impact” on the way information is produced and used in the report.

“While not wanting to sound cynical . . . we are painfully aware of the number of people affected,” she said. “Shelters are full more often than not.”

The organization’s national hotline has seen a 19 percent rise in domestic violence victims calling for help or support, while Massachusett’s SafeLink hotline also had an increase in the “double-digits,” Troop said. She said that while the Justice Department report found a national drop in domestic homicides from 1993 to 2004, that number has been on the rise in Massachusetts since 2003.

Troop said early intervention and counseling for both victims and batterers may have contributed to the decline in incidents reported to the Justice Department. But she said more needs to be done to help those in violent relationships, and hopes the new statistics do not lead communities to think they no longer need to fund initiatives.

“We need to identify the things we are doing that work and invest in them more,” she said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.