When it comes to a lot of female murder victims, there is the overarching stereotype of the “evil man in the bushes.”
It, turns out, though, that the evil man you know is far more dangerous.
A study conducted by the Centers of Disease Control (CDC) found that over half of all female murder victims are killed by intimate partners.
The study delved into specifics of over 10,000 murders from 2003-2014, and also looked at potential opportunities for prevention methods and racial breakdowns.
The study found that 53 percent of all murders of women (during the years looked at) involved a domestic or intimate partner.
Black women were found to suffer death at a partner's hands more often than women of any other race. 4.4 out of every 100,000 black women are killed by their partners, the study found.
Native American women had the second highest incidence of murder, 4.3 per 100,000 population. White women were found to have a rate of 1.5 per 100,000.
Black women were also found to be the most likely to be shot to death. 57.7 percent of the black women included in the study died of a gunshot wound.
Study authors found that 98 percent of the homicidal partners, regardless of race or method used to kill, were men.
This fits in to what criminologists know about murder. According to the FBI, men are far more likely to commit murder than women. A full 90 percent of known homicide offenders are male.
The study also investigated ways to prevent the murders of women.
Authors found that one in 10 of the murdered women experienced severe violence in the month before their deaths.
The study urged law enforcement officials to use the incidents as avenues for interventions, and as opportunities to steer women towards services that can help them deal with abuse.
While this report was full of sad news, let’s hope that these tragic numbers can lead to real change.