Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault
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.
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Domestic Violence within Washington State:

Download Data
| Source: Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs,
Crime in Washington 2009
- Statewide in 2009, there were 48,186 domestic violence
incidences reported to Sheriff or Police Departments, a 13.4%
increase from 2008.[4]
- In 2009, there were 11,150 reported violations of
protection/no-contact orders.[5]
- Of all the 2009 assaults occurring in WA State, 48.6% were
domestic violence
offenses.[6]
- In 2009 there were 22 murders by a
current or former boyfriend or husband.[7]
- In 2009, there were 975 aggravated assaults classified
as domestic violence offenses in King County.

Download Data | Source: Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 2009
Fatality Review Project.
Note: The number of homicides in 2009 for King County as reported by
the WSCADV (9) differs from law enforcement reports (16). 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).[8]
Read the definition
of relationship
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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.
|
Domestic Violence Offenses By Type
In King County - 2009 |
|
Type of Offense |
Number of Offenses |
|
Murder |
16 |
|
Rape |
89 |
|
Robbery |
53 |
|
Aggravated Assault |
975 |
|
Simple Assault |
5,838 |
|
Burglary |
215 |
|
Larceny |
258 |
|
Motor-Vehicle Theft |
26 |
|
Arson |
8 |
|
Violation PO |
2,197 |
|
Total |
9,675 |
|
Source: Washington
Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs.
Crime in Washington, 2009 |
Source: Washington Association of Sheriffs and
Police Chiefs. Crime in Washington, 2009

Download Data | Source: Communities Count, 2008 Social and Health Indicators
Across King County
Data from the 2005 & 2008 Communities Counts report indicate the
following:[9]
- 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).
- Currently, Seattle has the highest incidence of domestic
violence at 115 incidences per 100,000 people and East
King County has the lowest at 25 per 100,000 people.
- For 1999-2003 King County averaged 78.4 incidences of
domestic violence per 100,000 people. By 2008, the rate had
fallen to 72 incidences of domestic violence per 100,000
people.
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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
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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
[1] Revised Code of Washington 26.50.010
[2] National Violence Against Women Survey
[3] http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/pub-res/ipv_cost/01_executive.htm
[4] Crime in Washington
2009 Annual Report. Rep. Washington Association of Sheriffs and
Police Chiefs, 2009. Print.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ibid.
[7] Ibid.
[8] WA State Fatality
Review Project. Rep. Seattle: WA State Coalition Against
Domestic Violence, 2009. Print.
[9] "Communities Count 2005 &
2008." Communities Count. Web. 18 Aug. 2010.
<http://www.communitiescount.org/index.php?page=report_archives>.
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Quick Facts:
The 1998-2002 National Crime Victimization Survey found that 40% of females did not report incidents of family violence to police.
Data Note
Getting good information on domestic violence and sexual assault
is challenging. Read more about
information sources on these issues.
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