Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault

• Vision
• Domestic Violence
• National data
• State data
• Local data
• Children and domestic violence
• Teen dating violence
• Elder abuse
• Service system
• Sexual Assault
• Best Practices Index
• Resources
• Footnotes

Vision

United Way of King County envisions a community that proactively works to end domestic violence and sexual assault, promotes safety for all residents, and supports people who have been victimized and/or affected.

Domestic Violence

Domestic violence refers to a pattern of power and control where one family member, intimate partner or ex-partner physically or psychologically dominates another. Domestic violence includes physical, sexual, emotional and psychological actions or threats of actions. It includes behaviors that intimidate, manipulate, humiliate, isolate, frighten, terrorize, coerce, threaten, blame, or injure someone. There is no universal definition of domestic violence utilized across the data, but it is important to make a distinction between domestic violence and intimate partner violence. These are two common definitions that are used in collecting and reporting data and they measure different things.

• Domestic Violence: A pattern of power and control between any two individuals who have or have had any of the following relationships: spousal, familial, dating, platonic cohabitating, or child in common . Domestic violence will be the umbrella term used throughout this section.^[1]
• Intimate Partner Violence: A pattern of assaultive and coercive behaviors, including physical, sexual, and psychological attacks, as well as economic coercion and stalking, that adults or adolescents use against their intimate partners.^[2]

National Figures on Domestic Violence:

• Based on National Violence Against Women Survey data, an estimated 5.3 million Intimate Partner Violence victimizations occur among U.S. women ages 18 and older each year.^[3]
• Nationally, domestic violence is the single most frequent cause of injury to women between the ages of 15 and 44.

Return to Top

Domestic Violence within Washington State:

Download Data | Source: Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, Crime in Washington 2006

• A Group Health Study (2006) found that 44% of Washington women 18 and older experienced some form of abuse by an intimate partner.^[4]
• Statewide in 2006, there were 49,980 domestic violence incidences reported to Sheriff or Police Departments, a 14% decrease from 2005.^[5]
• In 2006, there were 12,267 reported violations of protection/no-contact orders.^[6]
• Of all the 2006 assaults occurring in WA State, 48.5% were domestic violence offenses.^[7]
• 50% of all women murdered in WA State in 2005 were killed by a current or former boyfriend or husband.^[8]
• From 1997 to 2006, there have been 113 intimate partner-related homicides and 33 abuser suicides in King County; while the State has experienced 417 homicides and 141 abuser suicides.
• However, 2006 consisted of the fewest intimate partner violence-related homicides for King County over the last 10 years.^[9]

Download Data | Source: Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 2006 Fatality Review Project.

Note: The number of homicides in 2006 for King County as reported by the WSCADV (4) differs from law enforcement reports (8). This is most likely due to different definitions utilized in data gathering. WSCADV looks at intimate partner violence (between two people in an intimate partnership), whereas law enforcement use a definition inclusive of all domestic relationships (parent/child, siblings, spouses, cohabitants, etc).
Read the definition of relationship

Return to Top

Local Picture of Domestic Violence:

There are no accurate data describing incidence of domestic violence for King County; however, the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs collects reported data.

The number of known domestic violence-related crimes is outlined below.

Source: Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs. Crime in Washington, 2006

• In 2006, there were 11,962 domestic violence-related offenses, including Murder (8--Please use the link on the right to see the definition of DV murder.) See Definition), Rape (83), Robbery (63), Aggravated Assault (1,095), Simple Assault (6,863), Burglary (241), Larceny (211), Motor Vehicle Theft (19), Arson (20), and Violation of Protection/No-Contact Order (2,989)

Download Data | Source: Communities Count, 2005 Social and Health Indicators Across King County

Data from the 2005 Communities Counts report indicate the following:

• Between 1999 and 2003, Seattle had the highest rate of major domestic violence crimes (126.7 per 100,000) including murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault; the East region had the lowest rate (25.0 per 100,000). In Seattle and King County overall, the rate declined during the same time period.
• From 2004 to 2005, the rates increased, though more steeply for Seattle. From 2005 to 2006, the rates started to decline for both areas, again more sharply for the city.
• Compared to the 1999-2003 graph above, in 2006, the City of Seattle had a lower rate of 110.8 per 100,000; while King County overall had a 2006 rate of 69.1 per 100,000 compared to 78.1 in the 1999-2003 time span.

Return to Top

Children and Domestic Violence

Children who witness domestic violence have become a subject of research and unique community-based recovery programs. Read more . . .

Teen Dating Violence

Teen dating violence is defined and measured differently in King County by various studies. Local programs offer teens outreach, training, prevention and support groups. Read more . . .

Elder Abuse

Elder abuse including neglect, as documented by the Department of Health and Social Services, appears to be increasing. Read more . . .

Service System for Victims and Survivors of Domestic Violence

There is increasing pressure on the various service systems to help victims and survivors of domestic violence in more specific and efficient ways--pressure originating from the growing racial and ethnic diversity, economic hardships and instability, and funding difficulties experienced throughout Washington State and King County. Current service delivery needs for victims include:

• Access to transitional housing, more shelters and beds, and affordable post-shelter housing options
• Legal assistance and representation
• Culturally competent, culturally specific and linguistically appropriate services, and
• Services for children who witness domestic violence (see Domestic Violence and Children section).

Read more about the service system for victims and survivors

Read more about the issues in providing services to victims of domestic violence

Return to Top

Sexual Assault

Nearly forty percent of women in WA state report they were sexually assaulted at some point in their lifetime. Read more about sexual assault and sexual assault services

Best Practices

Go to the index to best and promising practices

Resources

Footnotes