A Note to Readers

Throughout this manual, we use “intimate partner violence” (IPV) and “domestic abuse” or “domestic violence” interchangeably.  IPV reflects a more modern trend to use a broader term, referring to people who may be close to one another, but do not necessarily live in the same household.  

Throughout this manual, we also use the feminine pronoun or substitute “women” when referring to survivors of domestic abuse or intimate partner violence (IPV).  We use the masculine pronoun when referring to the abusive partner.  It is not our intention to diminish the existence of female-on-male domestic violence or to negate the reality of intimate partner violence among same-sex couples. Rather, we are using the feminine and masculine pronouns in this way both for clarity and because it reflects the disproportionate impact of intimate partner violence against women in the US. 

Consider the following statistics:

• The National Crime Victimization Survey found that 85% of IPV victims were women (2003).
  

• IPV results in nearly 2 million injuries and 1,300 deaths nationwide every year.  In 2002, 76% of IPV homicide victims were female.
  

• In 2001, women accounted for 85 percent of the victims of IPV (588,490 total) and men accounted for approximately 15 percent of the victims (103,220 total). 
  

• In 2001, intimate partner violence accounted for 20 percent of violent crime against women. The same year, intimate partners committed three percent of all violent crime against men.
  

• In 2000, 1,247 women were killed by an intimate partner. The same year, 440 men were killed by an intimate partner.
  

• In 2000, intimate partner homicides accounted for 33.5 percent of the murders of women and less than four percent of the murders of men.
  

• 44% of women murdered by their intimate partner had visited the emergency room within 2 years of the homicide.  Of these women, 93% had at least one injury visit. 
  

These statistics were obtained from the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the Center for Disease Control (CDC) or from the Family Violence Prevention Fund.

The views expressed are those of the authors at Western Massachusetts Legal Services (WMLS) and should not be construed as those of any other entity, unless so identified.  We have explained the law as we understand it at the time of publication.  The law changes frequently.  Parts of this manual may be incorrect or outdated when you use it.  This is not a treatise on family law; nor is it meant to replace a lawyer's opinion on individual problems.  WMLS is not responsible for problems or difficulties that might occur from reliance on this manual.