Neil Websdale, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Criminal Justice
Northern Arizona
University
Maureen Sheeran
Policy Analyst
National Council of
Juvenile and Family Court Judges
Byron Johnson, Ph.D.
Senior Fellow
Crime and Justice Center, Vanderbilt
University
Publication Date: Not Available
This document brings together information from across the country on domestic violence fatality reviews 1 . The document:
The full appendices listed in the print (not online) version offer an overview of existing research into domestic homicide and provide a variety of sample documents from selected states and jurisdictions who are at various stages in implementing fatality reviews. Many of these forms were not available in an electronic format and are therefore not available online at this time.
Statutory definitions of domestic violence vary from state to state. For the purposes of this document, "domestic violence fatalities" refer to those homicides caused by domestic violence. The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges' Model Code on Domestic and Family Violence defines domestic violence 2 as one or more of the below acts:
Preventable Death: "A preventable death is one in which, with retrospective analysis, it is determined that a reasonable intervention, (e.g., medical, educational, social, legal, psychological) might have prevented the death" (Colorado Child Fatality Review Commission Annual Report and Conference Proceedings, p. 15, 1991).
Reasonable : is defined by "taking into consideration the condition, circumstances or resources available" (Colorado Child Fatality Review Commission Annual Report and Conference Proceedings, p. 15, 1991).
Domestic violence death review : "means the deliberative process for identification of deaths, both homicide and suicide, caused by domestic violence, for examination of the systemic interventions into known incidents of domestic violence occurring in the family of the deceased prior to the death, for consideration of altered systemic response to avert future domestic violence deaths, or for development of recommendations for coordinated community prevention and intervention initiatives to eradicate, domestic violence." 3
The following is a synopsis of known domestic violence fatality review activity on a state-by-state basis. For each state the synopsis includes a discussion of legislation introduced; the names and contact information for known fatality review teams, or committees constituted to work toward the formation of such teams; the specific foci of teams; and, examples of reviews conducted by teams or other bodies.
Legislation
California Penal Code s 11163.3 (a) provides for the establishment of county-level interagency domestic violence death review teams. These teams investigate both homicides and suicides related to domestic violence. The teams serve to ensure the role of domestic violence is recognized and that subsequent preventive measures are introduced.
California Penal Code s 11163.5 provides for the coordination and integration of state and local efforts to address fatal domestic violence and creates a body of information, the use of which is designed to prevent domestic violence deaths 5 . The legislation charges the California Department of Justice with the task of carrying out reviews. The California Department of Justice is to proceed with the cooperation of the state Department of Social Services, the state Department of Health Services, the California State Coroner's Association, the county Welfare Director's Association, and the state domestic violence coalition 6 . The Department of Justice produces an annual report of domestic violence deaths. Local teams report findings to the Department of Justice. Area agencies participating in the death reviews will finance the contributions of their team members. The state will not bear the costs of local teams.
Team Activity
Los Angeles County (California) Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team
Alana Bowman
Special Assistant to Los Angeles City Attorney James Hahn
1600 City Hall East
200 N. Main Street
Los Angeles
CA 90012
213-237-0023
Fax: 213-485-8267
Santa Clara County Death Review Committee
Rolanda Pierre-Dixon
Chair
70 West Hedding Street
San Jose
CA 95110
408-792-2533
Fax: 408-294-6746
Shasta County Domestic Fatality Review Team
McGregor Scott, Chairperson
Domestic Violence Coordinating Council
1558 West Street, Suite 1
Reading
CA 96001
See also:
Lt. Harry Bishop (point person for the review team)
Shasta County Sheriff's Office
Major Crimes Unit
1525 Court St.
Reading, CA 96001
530-245-6172
See also:
Mark Williamson
Family Court Services
Reading
CA, 96001
530-225-5707
Los Angeles County's Team Stated Goals
The Los Angeles County (California) Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team, formed in 1993 under the Chairship of Alana Bowman, identified four primary goals:
Existing Reviews
The Charan Investigation
This domestic violence fatality review, conducted by the Commission on the Status of Women, City and County of San Francisco, is one of the most detailed ever conducted of a particular case. The Charan Investigation took place before the California legislation on domestic violence fatality reviews was introduced. Joseph Charan murdered his wife, Veena Charan, on January 15, 1990, and then took his own life. Veena Charan had sought the support of various government agencies for a period of 15 months prior to her demise. Veena had been separated from Joseph and was awarded custody of their nine-year-old son. During the 15 months preceding her death she made numerous reports to the police. Immediately prior to her death Joseph was arrested for felony wife beating and malicious mischief. As a result of his conviction for this offense Joseph received a 12-month suspended jail sentence. He was put on probation through the Adult Probation Department with the following three conditions: 1. domestic violence counseling; 2. stay away order; and 3. 30 days jail, of which he was given four days, the remainder to be served in the Sheriff's Work Alternative Program. Veena Charan obtained a restraining order through the civil courts. Mr. Charan violated the restraining order on several occasions. He also attempted to kidnap his son at the son's school. It was at the school that Mr. Charan killed his wife in front of school teachers and school children, before committing suicide.
The San Francisco Domestic Violence Consortium which commissioned the Charan investigation requested answers to three clusters of questions:
The case files and public testimony identified four essential gaps in service delivery in the Charan case:
Communication and Coordination
Aside from the communication between the San Francisco Police Department and the District Attorney's Office, there was little communication among the multiple agencies which had contact with Veena Charan. These multiple agencies included the municipal court, adult probation, family court services, and social services. The review committee called for centralization of information and better coordination of service delivery.
Data Collection
The commission recognized the need for systematic information about domestic violence cases. The investigation notes, "Data on the number of domestic violence cases handled by the departments ranged from very limited to none at all." 8 The Commission deemed the data to be of central importance in the identification of the level of need for services and the subsequent delivery of those services.
Access to Services
The Commission pointed out that a lack of sensitivity to and an understanding of multicultural and gay/lesbian issues in city departments increases the numbers of those suffering from domestic violence.
Training
Most of the training recommendations pertained to the issues regarding multicultural awareness. 9 Translation services were lacking. Specifically, there was a lack of translators in the Superior Court, Civil Division, and a limited number of translators in the Criminal Division. This problem created delays and misunderstandings of the agreements/court orders and proceedings. Specifically, the investigation called for the development of domestic violence advisory committees in each city department that worked with domestic violence cases.
Other excerpts from the Charan Investigation noted:
Final Report: Santa Clara County (California) Death Review Committee, October 1997. 14
The Committee began work in 1994 and appears to have been among the first domestic violence review teams in the country. It defined "domestic violence related death" as one where the perpetrator and victim were "romantically linked," either at the time of death or prior to the death. At time of writing the Committee is reviewing 51 cases. Members selected three cases from 1993 to get started. The report contains information on:
Highlights of the final report include:
Race/Ethnicity: of the 51 victims, 17 were Asian, 14 white, 12 Hispanic, five African American, two mixed-race, one Indian (not Native American). Asian victims were over-represented among victims although only one of the Asian cases came to the attention of community agencies prior to the killing. The report notes, "This made members feel that we were not getting the word out about the dangers of domestic violence to the Asian community." 16 This led to calls for greater Asian representation on the death review committee. The report notes three Asian members on the team. One committee member helped form the Asian Community Against Domestic Violence Coalition. This Coalition organized a domestic violence conference for the Vietnamese community in September 1997.
The suggestion that more Asian women need to be accessed through support services should not be taken to mean that those women who do not utilize services are somehow culpable for their own deaths. Karin Wang (1996) points to the way the cultural background of Asian women makes it difficult for them to utilize the support services offered by a predominantly white-run domestic violence movement. 17 In addressing this issue, Wang argues that battered Asian-American women have not been well understood by the domestic violence movement. 18
Team Activity
Denver Domestic Violence Fatality Review Committee
Project Safeguard
815 East 22nd Avenue
Denver,
CO 80205
303-863-7606
Project Safeguard is a pilot scheme of the City of Denver, Colorado, designed to investigate and prevent domestic violence homicides. The key goals of the project include setting up a pilot Fatality Review Committee in order to review systematically domestic deaths and educate system personnel, service providers, and perpetrator treatment programs with a view to prevention. Additionally, Project Safeguard sought to establish a red flag system through the analysis of fatalities from 1994-1996.
Legislation
Delaware Statute Title 13 s 2105 empowers a domestic violence coordinating council to investigate and review, through a review panel, the facts and circumstances of all deaths occurring in Delaware resulting from domestic violence. This includes homicides and suicides. Reviews of deaths involving criminal investigations will be delayed at least six months from the time of death and must be authorized by the Attorney General's office. Child deaths are to be reviewed jointly by the Child Death Review Commission and the domestic violence fatal incident review panel. The death of a minor will be reviewed by the domestic violence fatal incident review panel only if the child's parents or guardians were involved in an abusive relationship and where the minor's death is directly related to that abuse.
Team Activity
Raina Fishbane, J.D.
Domestic Violence Coordinating Council
900 King Street
Wilmington
DE 19801
302-577-2684
Formed in 1997, the fatality review team is a committee of the statewide coordinated council. The team is a multidisciplinary, multiagency group that meets monthly to research cases. The first report was expected in May 1998.
Charlotte Clark
U.S. District Attorney's Office
Judiciary Center, Room 3433
Washington
DC 20001
202-514-7375
The committee has plans to review cases from 1992 up to the present time, but only after the resolution of any pending criminal charges. They have suspended their meetings until they are able to obtain more funding.
Team Activity
The Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence is setting up four fatality review teams. This project is funded by the Violence Against Women Grants Office, U.S. Department of Justice.
Miami/Dade Fatality Review Team
Lauren Lazarus
Director, Domestic Violence Division
Administrative Office of the Courts
Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida
Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building
1351 N.W. 12th Street, Room #130
Miami
FL 33125
Office: 305-547-7115; Fax: 305-547-7134
Palm Beach County Fatality Review Team
Cynthia Rubenstein
Chair Person, Domestic Violence Council of Palm Beach
County
YWCA Harmony House
901 South Olive Avenue
West Palm Beach
FL 33401
Office: 561-833-2439; Fax: 561-640-9155
Tampa/Hillsborough Fatality Review Team
Mabel Bexley
Co-Chair of Fatality Review Team
The Spring of Tampa Bay
209 N. Willow
Tampa
FL 33606
Office: 813-247-5433 ext. 312; Fax: 813-247-2930
Sgt. Rod Reder
Co-Chair of Fatality Review Team
Hillsborough County Sheriff's Department
P.O. Box 3371
Tampa
FL 33601
Office: 813-247-8916; Fax: 813-247-8750
Another good contact in Hillsborough County, Florida, is Detective Linda Burton, Hillsborough County Sheriff's Department, who heads up the Hillsborough County Child Fatality Review Team, 813-247-8678.
Volusia/Putnam County Fatality Review Team
Ms. M.F. Warren
Co-Chair, Fatality Review Team
Chief Executive Officer
Domestic Abuse Council, Inc.
211 North Ridgewood Avenue, Suite 301
Daytona Beach
FL 32114
Office: 904-257-2297x18; FAX: 904-248-1985
Captain Craig Broughton
Co-Chair, Fatality Review Team
Volusia County Sheriff's Office
P.O. Box 569
Deland
FL 32721
Office: 904-254-1537 ext. 1363; FAX: 904-254-1554
Existing Reviews
The first Florida Mortality Review Project Executive Summary was released in October 1998 19 . Highlights are shown below. For additional information contact:
Robin Hassler J.D.
Executive Director Governor's Task Force on Domestic and
Sexual Violence
Executive Office of the Governor
The Capitol
Tallahassee
FL 32399
850-921-2168.
Florida Mortality Review Project: Executive Summary
Introduction
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement reported 230 domestic homicides for 1994. As a result of this disturbing statistic the Florida Governor's Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence funded a study of domestic fatalities in order to better understand, intervene, and prevent these crimes.
Methodology
For each domestic fatality in 1994 the researchers examined the following:
The situational antecedents to the fatality: Researchers explored the following:
Whether the victim or perpetrator had any history of emotional problems or mental illness and the specific forms of these problems. Had the perpetrator:
The lethal incident: Here researchers documented:
Researchers drew information from the following data sources: police records; social service reports; court documents; newspaper accounts; autopsy reports; mental health records; hospital and public health/medical data; and, other information that may have had a bearing on the decedent and their family. They also interviewed professionals including but not limited to police, court personnel, mental health workers, social service providers, and advocates for battered women.
Key Findings 20
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) documented 230 domestic fatalities in Florida during the year of 1994. Perhaps the most important and compelling finding in this study was that the research revealed a total of 328 domestic fatalities in 1994. The disparity stemmed from four major issues:
Adopting a broader definition of domestic homicide than law enforcement sources, the researchers showed that in 1994 approximately one-third of all homicides were related to domestic violence 21 . This ratio contrasts sharply with official police data which identifies only one-fifth of all homicides in Florida in 1994 as being caused by domestic violence. The essential findings from the 1994 Florida report on domestic violence deaths are shown below.
The analysis indicated that 294 of the 328 fatalities were consistent with the Florida Domestic Violence Statute 22 . The 34 remaining domestic fatalities either fell outside the statute criteria (e.g. victim and perpetrator were not married, lived at different addresses, and had no children together) or the researchers simply did not have enough information to determine if they met all the criteria of the statute.
Nearly all cases with multiple victims were perpetrated by men. In only six cases did a woman kill more than one victim, or murder her partner and then commit suicide. In no case did a woman murder her husband, her children, and then herself.
Many of the factors present in the multiple domestic killings also appear in the killing of individual women. Most of the individual women were killed by men. Nearly all of these cases involved women who had an extensive history of violent victimization prior to being killed. As the statistical analysis reveals, other important factors include prior threats to kill, escalating abuse, and obsessive possessiveness and jealousy on the part of perpetrators. In fewer cases there was prior documented involvement of police and other criminal justice agencies. Of all adult women victims, only three were killed by other women. Five adult female fatalities resulted from women killing themselves as part of multiple killing scenarios.
When women are killed in either multiple or single-victim domestic fatalities, it is usually the final event in an abusive relationship of long standing. When men are killed by other men or by women, it is rarely, if ever, the end-product of a battering relationship in which the men are the victims of abuse. When men are killed by other men in domestic situations, it is often because the two men are competing for a woman who has, in many cases, been victimized by one of the men. Three-quarters of all adult male domestic fatalities were perpetrated by men. Only one-quarter of the men who died were killed by women.
Women who killed men nearly always did so out of self-defense, or less often, the defense of their children. These women have always, or nearly always, been pushed to the brink of human endurance by the batterers who they eventually kill. While the killing of batterers by the long-standing victims of battering may not qualify as self-defense in a court of law, the act of defensive or preemptive violence by women is qualitatively different from the offensive acts of violence perpetrated by men against women.
The statistical analysis of child fatalities is hampered by missing data. Nevertheless, there are certain themes that seem to pervade these tragedies. The most common correlate is that the death of children resulting from abuse or neglect, occurs in homes where caretakers tend not to be married. About one-third of the perpetrators were mother's boyfriends, one-third were biological fathers, and approximately a quarter were biological mothers. These men sometimes had criminal records, including a history of violence. It is clear from multiple sources of data that child fatalities normally occur within a context of poverty, often abject poverty. Research findings also reveal that 50 percent of the children about whom we have reliable data have been physically abused before, often for a long period of time. However, it is not necessarily the case that this prior abuse has come to the attention of authorities. For example, very few of the families in which child fatalities occurred had prior documented contact with the police. Children who are under five years of age are clearly the most vulnerable. Over half of the child victims in our sample were under two years of age. Those who were older were often killed with easily obtained firearms.
"Red Flags" (situational antecedents) identified in order of frequency in the 106 cases where men killed in intimate female partners in Florida in 1994.
Team Activity
Linda A. Kiyotoki
Supervisor, Domestic Violence Unit
Adult Services Branch
State of Hawaii Family Court
First Court
P.O. Box 3498
Honolulu
HI 96811
An informal, in-house judicial review, that expands to include other criminal justice agency professionals and community players, has been in operation through Judge Michael Town's office in the Family Court in Hawaii for a number of years. 23
More recently, Cindy Kraemer of WATCH (Minnesota) reports that Hawaii state coalition against domestic violence was unable to gain cooperation to implement domestic fatality reviews due to fiscal constraints, confidentiality issues, and finger pointing. The coalition passed it off to the legislature. The 1997 legislative session did not introduce fatality review legislation due to financial difficulties. 24
Team Activity
Neil Hochstadt, Ph.D.
State Task Force Chairman
LaRabida Hospital
East 65th and Lake Michigan
Chicago,
IL 60649
Office: 773-363-6700 ext. 420
The area is trying to develop domestic violence fatality review teams using the existing child fatality review process as a linchpin.
Probation Officer Tracy Bray and the Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence initiated the Iowa Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team project, which has yet to review a domestic fatality. Law enforcement had concerns about being a target or scapegoat, but once they were on board many others followed; their legislation passed in the 1998 session. The Iowa Department of Public Health is the administrative agency and they are absorbing all additional expenses for the project. They anticipate reviewing approximately 12 domestic violence fatalities a year.
No legislation passed and no teams are in place as yet. However, the attorney general's office did conduct a synopsis of patterns of domestic violence related deaths.
Kentucky Attorney General's Task Force on Domestic Violence Crime: Domestic Violence Homicides and Suicides, October 1993. 25
This report emerged out of a broad initiative in Kentucky to increase awareness of domestic violence, a concern to furnish women and families with better state services, and a need to standardize data collection on domestic violence in general and domestic violence homicides and suicides in particular. The report summarizes the findings on domestic violence homicides and suicides which occurred in 1991, 1992, and the first quarter of 1993. The specific goals of the report were to collect and analyze all available data on domestic violence related homicides and suicides for the following purposes:
To improve the collection and reporting of domestic violence homicide and suicide incidents at the local, state, and national levels. The preliminary findings revealed:
Legislation
The Maine Commission on Domestic Abuse was constituted under Title 5, section 12004-I, subsection 74-C., and was required to establish the Domestic Abuse Homicide Review Panel, referred to in this subsection as the "panel," to review the deaths of persons who are killed by family or household members as defined by section 4002.
A. According to the legislation, the chair of the commission shall appoint members of the panel who have experience in providing services to victims of domestic abuse and shall include at least the following: the Chief Medical Examiner, a physician, a nurse, a law enforcement officer, the Commissioner of Human Services, the Commissioner of Corrections, the Commissioner of Public Safety, a judge as assigned by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court, a representative of the Maine Prosecutor's Association, an assistant attorney general responsible for the prosecution of homicide cases designated by the Attorney General, an assistant attorney general handling child protection cases designated by the Attorney General, a victim-witness advocate, a mental health service provider, a facilitator of a certified batterers' intervention program under section 4014 and three persons designated by a statewide coalition for family crisis services.
B. The panel shall recommend to state and local agencies methods of improving the system for protecting persons from domestic abuse, including modifications of laws, rules, policies, and procedures following completion of adjudication.
C. The panel shall collect and compile data related to domestic abuse.
Team Activity
Anita St. Onge
207-780-5851
Portland
ME
This state just formed a team which has held one meeting.
Team Activity
Jenny Harding
WATCH
612-341-2747
WATCH has funding to research fatality review teams. This initial research is expected to be up and running January, 1999. WATCH has an advisory committee and is planning a site visit to observe an established team at work.
Legislation
N.R.S. 217.475 (1997) states that a court or agency of local government can organize or sponsor one or more multidisciplinary teams to review deaths caused by domestic violence as defined in N.R.S. 33.018. The team serves at the pleasure of the court or agency. If a written request from a person related to the victim within the third degree of consanguinity is received within one-year after the fatality, then the court or agency shall review the death.
Team Activity
Washoe County Fatality Review Team
Judge Jan Berry
District Court One
75 Court Street
Reno
NV 89501
Office: 702-328-3171
This team was established in 1994 as a subcommittee of the Washoe County Task Force on Domestic Violence. The team is multidisciplinary, multiagency, and meets regularly. 28
The University of New Mexico Department of Emergency Medicine is the administrative agency for their local domestic violence fatality review team. They initiated their effort in July, 1997 with a one-year Violence Against Women Act grant. All team members must sign a confidentiality agreement to enable them to share confidential information. With the exception of medical records, they have encountered little resistance to acquiring information when it is available. They are not pursuing legislation at this time. New Mexico had approximately 45-50 domestic violence fatalities in 1997. 29
Bob Nicholais
Staff Member on Commission
New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic
Violence
Capital View Office Park
52 Washington Street, Room 366
Rensselaer,
New York 12144
518-486-6262
The Governor established a commission for a one-year review of domestic violence related homicides. A report of these findings entitled the "Commission on Domestic Violence Fatalities: Report to the Governor 1997" became available in October 1997. The Commission is still active with one full-time and one part-time paid position. New York City also produced a report on female homicides entitled, "Female Homicide Victims in New York City 1990-1994" available from: NYC Dept. of Health, Injury Prevention Program, 2 Lafayette Street, 20th Floor, New York, New York 10007.
Existing Reviews
Commission on Domestic Violence Fatalities: Report to the Governor, 1997 30
The Commission was appointed by Executive Order of Governor George Pataki on October 1, 1996. It was charged with the responsibility to "investigate select domestic violence fatalities to determine whether the deaths were associated with any deficiencies in the social service system, law enforcement, the courts, or any other public or private entity." 31 One of the tasks of the commission was to "assess whether a Fatality Review Board should be created to examine domestic violence fatalities." 32 The commission was appointed in response to a number of high-profile domestic homicides that occurred when other forms of violent crime (e.g. murder, robbery, aggravated assault) in New York were declining. 33
Highlights of the 57 deaths, 34 reviewed by the Commission include:
Team Activity
Hamilton County Fatality Review Team
Ann McDonald
Co-Chair
Women Helping Women Inc.
216 E. Ninth Street
Cincinnati
OH 45202-6109
513-977-5541
Terry Daly
Co-Chair
Hamilton County Coroner's Office
3159 Eden Avenue
Cincinnati
OH 45219
513-221-4524
The fatality review panel is organized under the auspices of the Hamilton County Domestic Violence Coordinating Council and is chaired by the Hamilton County Coroner. Their first meeting took place in July, 1996. Members worked on policies until January 1997, then conducted a review of an older closed case. In April, 1997 they did their first official review. They expect to review six or seven deaths a year.
Dayton 35
The Criminal Justice Council started their project in April, 1997. They began reviewing cases in August, 1997. Their local domestic violence coordinating council is a multidisciplinary agency, which helped in getting cooperation, especially from the police department. The Family Violence Collaborative handles all of the administrative responsibilities which are absorbed by their operating budget. They expect to review approximately 11 cases a year.
Team Activity
Multnomah County Fatality Review Team
Chiquita Rollins
Domestic Violence Coordinator
Department of Community and Family Services
421 S.W. 6th, Suite 700
Portland
OR 97204
503-248-3691 ext. 27806
Team Activity
Philadelphia Women's Death Review Team
Dawn Berney
Project Director
Philadelphia Health Management Corporation
260 South Broad Street
Philadelphia
PA 19102-5085
215-985-2500
Another important contact in Philadelphia is Mimi Rose, J.D.
The Philadelphia Women's Death Review Team is a multiagency, multidisciplinary group convened as a public-private collaboration. Its aims are to reduce the number of domestic violence deaths by examining the role of violence in the lives of Philadelphia women killed by an intimate partner and the effects of the killing on their children. Without any funding or legislation the Philadelphia Department of Public Health with support from the District Attorney's Office is conducting reviews. This multidisciplinary team goes down to medical examiners' offices to review all homicides, suicides, unintentional injury, undetermined, inadequate certificates, peculiar circumstances (asthma, AIDS), all deaths of women from 15 to 60 years of age, not just domestic violence cases. 36 These deaths could either be directly related to domestic violence or indirectly related due to women's inability to access health care. Three thousand women die in Philadelphia every year and the team expects to look at 400 to 500 deaths. A central objective of the team is to be able to identify any domestic violence directed at decedents in the 12 months prior to the fatality. The meetings are quarterly.
Existing Reviews
The Deliberations of the Philadelphia Team
The Philadelphia Team 37 makes the following important observations about the deaths of women:
According to Tennessee's pending legislation they will have a state panel attached to the Department of Health. Some of the duties of the state panel will include: reviewing reports from local domestic violence lethality and fatality review panels; making recommendations for any changes to laws, rules, and policies that would promote the safety and well-being of families and children of domestic violence; undertaking annual statistical studies of the incidence and cause of domestic violence fatalities; providing training and written materials to the local panels; developing protocols for the collection of data; providing technical assistance to local panels; and periodically assessing the operations of domestic violence lethality and fatality prevention efforts.
They are to establish a minimum of one local panel in each judicial district. The local panels are to: review all deaths related to domestic violence; collect and submit data to the state panel; submit recommendations and advocate for system improvements and resources where gaps and deficiencies may exist; and participate in training provided by the state panel. 39
Team Activity
Domestic Violence Fatality Review Project
Margaret Hobart
Project Manager
DSHS Children's Administration
P.O. Box 45710
Olympia
WA 98504-5710
Office: 360-902-7976
Under a Violence Against Women Act grant to encourage arrest, the Washington State Domestic Violence Fatality Review Project has begun to document the decision-making process regarding the form and purpose of fatality review, and has established procedures and protocols to guide it. As of October 1, 1998, the project has overseen the review of four domestic violence fatalities. 40 The team has created many materials including an overview, educational tools, surveys and forms. As of August, 1998 four fatality review teams were operating in five counties in Washington State. These teams are coordinated through Margaret Hobart's office.
The Supreme Court of Appeals voted unanimously to establish fatality review teams in December, 1994. The role of the fatality review teams is to examine court cases where a death has occurred in order to identify any patterns or trends that may be present, to examine court procedures to determine whether proper steps were taken, to review applicable statutes and rules to see whether amendments are needed, and to assess whether other involved agencies followed required processes and whether there was a coordinated effort among agencies to address the issues in the case.
The West Virginia program does not focus on domestic violence deaths only, although they do acknowledge most of the cases reviewed are domestic violence related. In 1997 they reviewed four cases involving five deaths. One was a murder-suicide. The administrative director of the program reviews cases to determine if they meet their criteria. Then the case is shown to the Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court, if they concur the case is referred to one of their three Fatality Review Teams. A case is never reviewed by the team from the community in which the death occurred. The team will examine the case, produce findings, and develop recommendations. This information is given to the Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court who may make recommendations to the Supreme Court. This document is not public; however, a synopsis of all the fatality review team reports is produced each calendar year. 41
Team Activity
Rick Robb
Department of Social Services
Hathaway Building #322
Cheyenne
WY 82002
307-777-7150
Area social service agencies review domestic fatalities as those deaths are reported. There is no multiagency committee. Teams are just starting to review adult cases.
Domestic violence fatality review committees have learned much from death reviews in the field of medicine. The medical review model is based on the internal reviews of deaths that occur in hospital settings. Personnel involved with patients who die in questionable circumstances present information to the team. The team gathers the information together and reaches a conclusion about the reasons for the fatality. Teams adopting the medical review model should be aware of one of the earlier problems in this process, namely, "catching rascals, rather than on improving hospital wide performance" (Rosen and Susman, 1983). Child fatality review teams initially emerged with a punitive ethos. 42 In particular, some teams sought to identify breakdowns in the system of service delivery. Later teams focused less on individual accountability and more on system-wide service coordination. However, as the Colorado Committee points out, if cases are handled improperly, or if a crime is committed, agencies with the greatest involvement and clearest responsibility are asked to put things right. In especially egregious situations, matters can be submitted to a grand jury (see Stone, 1995: pp. 15-17 and especially note 59).
Domestic violence fatality reviews that have gotten off the ground in a small number of states have tried to adhere to this no-blame and shame ethos. Examples where this philosophy is explicitly written into the operational protocols include the reviews in Hawaii conducted out of Judge Michael Town's office and the Project Safeguard reviews through the City of Denver. For example, the mission statement of Project Safeguard includes, "It is recognized that perpetrators of domestic violence are ultimately responsible for the death of victims. Thus, the goal of this committee is not to place blame but rather to better understand the dynamics of domestic violence when death is involved and thereby diminish the possibilities of future fatalities."
From reviewing existing literature, a common purpose for the existing teams is to better understand, intervene, and prevent domestic homicide. 43
Family Court Judge Michael Town, Hawaii, hopes review teams will:
Scope of Review
It is clear from review teams across the country that there is considerable variation in terms of which deaths are reviewed. As noted, the Philadelphia Project reviews hundreds of cases, taking perhaps 30 minutes per review. The idea in Philadelphia is to identify as many cases as possible where women died as a direct or indirect result of domestic violence. Conversely, reviews like the Charan Investigation seek to identify system failures through an extremely detailed analysis of one case. In many ways the Florida fatality review project is intermediate between these two ends of the continuum. Although the Florida study has not conducted public hearings with respect to the cases reviewed, the deaths are scrutinized in great detail using materials from multiple agencies. At the same time the Florida study identified and then reviewed 328 domestic deaths, a number comparable to the Philadelphia undertaking.
As the Florida teams form and begin their review work another recurring theme has been whether to review near fatalities. This concern to review near fatalities has also cropped up elsewhere. One possibility is the formation of a subcommittee or offshoot review body, charged with reviewing incidents where women are severely injured but not killed. Given the fact that witnesses who survive these near-fatal episodes will be severely traumatized the approach to this kind of review raises important ethical questions.
Education and Awareness
Another commonly stated goal of teams is to educate the community in general, and women in particular, about the heightened risk of lethal domestic violence. Ideally, education may enable victims of domestic violence to make more informed choices about their survival strategies and service providers to assist them more effectively. As Stone points out, "there is a fine line between warning and frightening. The women should not be discouraged from leaving a dangerous situation; they should be assisted in developing a safety plan and protected during its implementation." 45 However, given that battered women are often extremely perceptive about men's use of violence and finely attuned to escalations in violence, none of the above should be taken to mean the reason battered women are killed is they are poorly informed of the risks they face. Clearly, as noted elsewhere, batterers are responsible for their violence and the extension of multiple services to battered women in combination with the incapacitation of batterers is the best prevention tool.
Legislation setting up child fatality review teams is varied in its mandates and recommendations regarding team membership. As Stone indicates, some states did not legislate membership, 46 others required a small number of members, 47 and still others spelled out who members should be or where they should be drawn from. 48 The discussions about membership of child fatality review teams varied by state. These discussions have informed the debate about membership of adult review teams. Usually adult fatality review teams are inclusive rather than exclusive, often being open to incorporating new members and agencies. With regard to adult review teams, Stone recommends including a member of the public to guard against members engaging in cover-ups. In Nevada, teams must include, without limitation, representatives of organizations concerned with law enforcement, physical and mental health, or the prevention of domestic violence and assistance to victims of domestic violence. 49 In Delaware, a Fatal Incident Review Team will be co-chaired by two members of the Coordinating Council. In addition to the Chairs, the Review Team shall consist of six other core members: the Attorney General or his or her designee, the Director of the Division of Family Services or his or her designee, the chair of the Domestic Violence Task Force or his or her designee, the Chief Judge of the Family Court or his or her designee, the Chief Magistrate of the Justice of the Peace Courts or his or her designee and a law enforcement officer to be appointed by the Delaware Chiefs of Police Council. The Team can invite other members to serve on an ad hoc basis and participate as full members of the team for a particular review. Such persons may include, but are not limited to, individuals with particular expertise that would be helpful to the review panel, representatives from organizations or agencies that had contact with or provided services to the individual prior to his or her death, that individual's abusive partner or family member, or the alleged perpetrator of the death.
Under California Penal Code 11163.3 (d1-11) domestic violence death review teams shall be comprised of, but not limited to, the following:
The California legislation still allows for local discretion around the construction of teams. Since the originating agency is not restricted by the legislation, each county is free to decide upon the convening agency. Alana Bowman recommends that several advocates for battered women be included in the makeup of the teams to assure that the perspectives of victims are incorporated into social policy. Given the importance of appreciating the perspectives of underserved populations, it might also be useful to have advocates who have experience working with abused minority women, the elderly, women from rural communities, and disabled women.
Although membership patterns vary slightly from state to state, the core of the teams seems to be drawn from three main arenas: public health; criminal justice; and, advocacy/social services. I refer readers to the appendices for these minor variations by state.
In the case of child fatality review teams, participants tended to organize locally and engage in face-to-face deliberations. Except for Georgia, 51 all states which pioneered child teams put them under the auspices of an existing agency or state official. The early legislation establishing child death review teams did not delineate specific activities, duties, and protocols for those teams. Rather, local teams worked out these issues. Later legislation benefited from these pioneering activities and the work of subsequent teams was more closely specified. 52
A number of adult domestic violence fatality review teams have produced interagency agreements that facilitate the sharing of information and otherwise assist with the collation, coordination, and synthesis of data from each agency. 53
Under California Penal Code s 11163.3 (c) a county can develop a protocol that may be used as a guideline to assist coroners and other persons who perform autopsies on domestic violence victims to determine whether domestic violence contributed to death or whether domestic violence had occurred prior to death, but was not the actual cause of death.
The Washington State Project highlights two models for death reviews: the "Investigative Fatality Review" and the "Systems Analysis Fatality Review." The "investigative model" prioritizes the need to identify domestic violence fatalities which have not previously been identified as domestic violence related by police, prosecutors, and coroners. Its goals include understanding how or why deaths were not classified as domestic violence related and working toward clearer elucidation of causes of death. In particular, the investigative reviews make much of the need to improve protocols for coroners and others investigating deaths. If this is achieved then the outcome will be not only a more accurate count of domestic violence related deaths, but also an increase in public awareness of domestic violence as a threat to life and well-being. The "systems approach" prioritizes the need to identify how interventions were ineffective. The goal is to change the policies and procedures of involved agencies. Under this model, it is not necessary to identify every domestic violence related death.
This section introduces a complex set of issues that will be discussed at great length at the Domestic Violence Fatality Reviews: A National Summit, in Key West, October 1998. The information below is not designed to present definitive positions on confidentiality, liability, and immunity. Rather it is anticipated that jurisdictions will move toward resolving these issues and concerns in their own way. 55
Among child fatality review teams, Minnesota was one of the first states to address the confidentiality issue. Under the Minnesota Statute, 56 the team has access to confidential (non-public) information if maltreatment is thought to have contributed to the death. This includes private hospital records. This confidential information is not subject to subpoena or discovery. Neither can the deliberations at the Minnesota team meetings be disclosed, unless disclosure furthers the process of reviewing the death.
Regarding adult domestic violence fatality review, a small number of states have addressed issues regarding confidentiality, liability, and immunity. In Nevada, information can be shared among team members regarding the decedent or any person who was in contact with the victim and any other information deemed by the team to be pertinent to the review. This information is to remain confidential. 57 In addition, each member of the team is immune from civil or criminal liability for an activity related to the review of the death. 58 Those related to the decedent within the third degree of consanguinity may receive a report of the domestic fatality from the team.
In Delaware, the review process, and any records created by it, shall be exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act in Chapter 100 of Title 29. All records and documents contributing to the formulation of reviews are deemed confidential. Such records and documents are not subject to subpoena or discovery. Team members will not be required to make any statements regarding review deliberations. 59 Likewise members and their agents will be immune from claims and not be subject to any suits, liability, damages or any other recourse, civil or criminal, arising from any act, proceeding, decision or determination undertaken or performed or recommendation made, provided such persons acted in good faith and without malice in carrying out their responsibilities; good faith and lack of malice are presumed and the burden of proving otherwise falls upon the complainant. 60
In Maine, persons disclosing or providing information or records upon the request of the panel are not criminally or civilly liable for disclosing or providing information or records in compliance with this paragraph. The proceedings and records of the panel are confidential and are not subject to subpoena, discovery or introduction into evidence in a civil or criminal action. The commission shall disclose conclusions of the review panel upon request, but may not disclose information, records or data that are otherwise classified as confidential.
Other teams have required team members to sign statements saying they will not disclose confidential information. Under this arrangement case-identifying information with agency identifiers can only be removed from team meetings by the agency contributing the information. 61
Immunity laws may be required to insulate team members from personal liability stemming from their participation in death reviews. States may want to pass laws to protect team members. However, the consensus seems to be that the risk of personal liability is minimal. 62
Alana Bowman has identified a number of possible steps involved in creating review teams. I paraphrase these below:
Team members will likely review the deaths in their respective agencies and bring those findings to the death review team. Protocols need to be established regarding the timing of the review, producing reports, disseminating information, etc.. Most existing teams examine domestic violence-related deaths in which there are/were romantic links between the parties (e.g. Santa Clara County, Washington State). It seems that teams have paid less attention to phenomena such as the killings between men stemming from competition over women. Another key issue is whether to review open or closed cases. Research in Florida reveals that reviewing cases pending prosecution is problematic because the state is unwilling or unable to share information that might compromise a conviction. 63 Most known teams find closed cases ideal to review. Alana Bowman suggests that for teams starting their review work it is best to review homicide-suicides in which the perpetrator is clearly identified and there is no prosecution pending.
Existing teams have varying powers regarding the acquisition of information. In Florida, teams are discussing the feasibility of bringing in witnesses to improve understanding of domestic deaths. Other states have formally empowered teams in this area. For example, the Delaware review team has the power and authority to administer oaths and to compel the attendance of witnesses whose testimony is related to the death under review. It can also compel the production of records related to the death by filing a praecipe 64 for a subpoena, through the office of the Attorney General, with the Prothonotary 65 of any county. 66
Monitoring Change
Policy changes have developed as a result of team activity. The San Francisco Task Force investigating the Charan case suggested that an independent task force be established to monitor the implementation of the Charan investigation recommendations (see Stone, p.6). Under the medical model, mortality reviews are themselves reviewed. First, causes of death are scrutinized. Second, the review process is assessed by a central body under the broad umbrella of "Quality Assurance" (see Stone, 1995: 13-14 and note 52). This review of the reviews can occur on an annual basis.
Delaware review teams must issue annual reports to the Domestic Violence Coordinating Council summarizing in aggregate fashion all findings and recommendations made over the preceding year. The summaries must note any systemic changes introduced as a result of review work. 67 The commission shall disclose conclusions of the review panel upon request, but may not disclose information, records or data that are otherwise classified as confidential.
The Maine Commission shall submit a report on the panel's activities, conclusions, and recommendations to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over judiciary matters by January 1, 1999, and annually thereafter.
Typical recommendations for change include:
Recommendations from the Florida Mortality Review Report
Recommendations from the Kentucky Attorney General's Report, 1993
The recommendations promoted the establishment of county-level domestic violence councils. These interagency councils should develop, coordinate, and strengthen local criminal justice and community service responses to domestic violence. In particular with regard to the potential for lethal violence, these interagency councils should work to better protect women who decide to leave violent relationships.
Other Recommendations
A number of child fatality review teams have identified the need to provide grief counseling for the surviving family members of the decedent. This seems particularly pressing in the case of children whose parents are killed in domestic violence homicides, or who survive attempted domestic homicides themselves. As Jerry Adler notes, children should be encouraged to grieve, express their feelings of fear, loss, and anger. Particularly vulnerable according to some experts are children aged 9-13 who are moving toward independence and who may be less likely to share their emotions publicly. 70 Children who witness parental homicides are emotionally traumatized, stigmatized, and deeply scarred by such a terrifying incident. According to Sondra Burman and Paula Allen-Meares, these children exhibit debilitating symptoms comparable to post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). 71 These authors describe the behavioral and expressive therapeutic treatment strategies used to assist two child victims. 72
The Courts and Communities: Confronting Violence in the Family Conference Highlights Document, San Francisco (1993), noted the importance of awareness of lethality issues in the disposition of domestic cases. The Highlights Document raises important questions about children's safety and makes the basic point that "children are safer when moms are safer." Regarding issues of safety in the courtroom the report identifies red flags for lethal violence (prior use of deadly weapon; separation/estrangement; escalating domestic violence; public violence; threats to kill; stalking; obsessive jealousy; alcohol or drug abuse; sexual abuse; violence toward children; suicide attempts; hostage-taking). Specifically the report notes "because a domestic homicide is often preceded by numerous contacts with the justice system, developing better information systems and communications among courts, law enforcement and prosecution is an important way to reduce the risk of lethal violence." 73 There are also brief but useful notes on pretrial release issues, courtroom security, accelerated dockets/special dockets, and case coordination.
New York Commission
The Report of the New York Commission recommends that:
Interagency Agreement: Washoe County, Nevada, Domestic Violence Fatality Review Committee.
Working Assumptions and Group Agreement for Domestic Violence Fatality Reviews: Washington State Domestic Violence Fatality Review Project.
Interagency Agreement to establish the multidisciplinary child fatality review committee, Denver, Colorado.
Nevada Revised Statutes Annotated. Title 16. Correctional Institutions; Aid to Victims of Crime. Chapter 217. Aid to Certain Victims of Crime. Assistance to Victims of Domestic Violence.
Delaware Code Annotated. Title 13. Domestic Relations. Chapter 21. Domestic Violence Coordinating Council.
West's Annotated California Codes. Penal Code. Part 4. Prevention of Crimes and Apprehension of Criminals. Title 1. Investigation and Control of Crimes and Criminals. Chapter 2. Control of Crimes and Criminals. Article 2. Reports of Injuries.
Denver Domestic Violence Fatality Review Committee: Member Confidentiality Agreement.
Colorado Department of Health, Division of Health Statistics and Vital Records: Agreement Regarding Access to and Use of Confidential Vital Records Information.
Barbara Hart, Legal Committee, Domestic Violence Death Review, February 9, 1995, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.
Washington State. Survey: Confidentiality and Access to Information for Washington Domestic Violence Fatality Reviews.
Domestic Violence Death Review Panel: Operating Guidelines, Hamilton County, Ohio. Includes section on confidentiality.
Santa Clara County: Criteria for Review.
Washington State Domestic Violence Fatality Review Project: Information forms.
Washoe County, Domestic Violence Fatality Review: Report and Recommendation.
Hamilton County, Domestic Violence Death Review Panel: Data form.
Intimate Partner Homicide
"Intimate partner homicide" refers to the murder or non-negligent manslaughter of a person by her/his intimate or former intimate partner.
Trends in Intimate Partner Homicide
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), in the United States during the 1976-1996 period, intimate partner murder fell by 36 percent from 3,000 (1976) to 1,800 (1996). The number of U.S. women murdered by intimates fell from 1,600 in 1976 to 1,326 in 1996. During the same period the number of men murdered by intimates decreased from 1,357 (1976) to 516 (1996). This overall decline in intimate murder is most marked in the black community. The per capita rate of intimate murders among blacks was 11 times that among whites in 1976, but only four times that among whites in 1996. The sharpest decrease occurred among black male victims. The BJS report specifically notes:
In 1976 the per capita rate of intimate murder of black men was nearly 19 times higher than that of white men. The rate among black females that year was seven times higher than the rate among white females. In 1996 the black male rate was eight times that of white males, and the black female rate was three times higher than the white female rate.
Age
In general, younger rather than older people are more likely to be both the victims and perpetrators of intimate homicide. In their analysis of FBI Supplemental Homicide Reports from 1976-1985, Mercy and Saltzman identified 16,595 spousal homicides. They found that the risk of spousal homicide increased as the age differential between the partners increased. Wilson and Daly note that "marriages with exceptionally high age disparities....have homicide rates four times as high as that prevailing in marriages with the most common gap, namely those in which the husband is about 2 years older."
Race and Ethnicity
Block and Christakos note that in 1990 in Chicago the intimate partner homicide rate was 5.7 per 100,000 for African-Americans compared with the much lower rates of 1.1 for Latinos and 0.4 for Whites. Mercy and Saltzman found similar differentials by race in their longitudinal analysis of spousal homicide. Among blacks, the rate of spousal homicide was 8.4 times higher than among whites.
Stark and Flitcraft point out that the seemingly high rates of black domestic homicide may have more to do with the lowly social class position of blacks than with race. Their argument is consistent with a number of other studies that argue that socioeconomic status rather than racial variations offer a better explanation for variations in homicide rates across states and between cities. For example, in his study of 222 intraracial domestic homicides in Atlanta, Georgia, Centerwall used the number of persons per room in residences as a proxy for socioeconomic status (SES). He reached the conclusion that once SES was controlled, blacks were no more likely than whites to commit domestic homicide. In a replication study of 349 intraracial homicides in New Orleans, Louisiana, Centerwall found similar results.
Clearly the disproportionately high number of African-American intimate partner homicides cannot be explained by innate black tendencies toward violence or homicidal behavior. If this were the case we would expect to find much higher rates of homicide in general, and domestic homicide in particular, in predominantly black cultures in Africa, and we do not. If differential rates of domestic homicide are not attributable solely to factors such as SES, then it is likely that the legacy of slavery, oppression, and discrimination plays an important part.
Sex
In the United States from 1976-1985, inter-spousal killings accounted for an estimated 18,417 fatalities. Wives comprised 10,529 victims and husbands 7,888. Using U.S. homicide data Wilson and Daly note, "for every 100 men who killed their wives, about 75 wives killed their husbands." Wilson and Daly use the term "Sex Ratio of Killing" (SROK) to refer to the "homicides perpetrated by women per 100 perpetrated by men." These sex ratios are unique to the United States. In other societies such as Australia, Canada, Denmark, England, and Wales, Scotland, and India, the proportion of women killers is much lower. However, as Moore and Tennenbaum argue, rather than asking why the U.S. SROK is so high compared with other countries, a more important and central question to ask is, "Why is the SROK so much higher for Blacks?" According to Moore and Tennenbaum the high black SROK drives up the total SROK for the U.S. They note, "Excluding blacks from our analysis reduces the total SROK for the U.S. to 48." With a SROK of 48, the (adjusted) U.S. (non-black) SROK comes much closer to that in New South Wales (1968-1986; 31), Canada (1974-1983; 31), and Scotland (1979-1987; 40).
The BJS (1998) notes that the SROK for intimate partners is declining. Reporting on the period 1976-1996, the BJS notes that 20,311 men were intimate murder victims (62 percent killed by wives, four percent by ex-wives, and 34 percent by non-marital partners such as girlfriends). In the same period, 31,260 women died at the hands of intimates (64 percent killed by husbands, five percent by ex-husbands, and 32 percent by non-marital partners such as boyfriends). This gives a SROK of 65. While the overall rate of intimate partner murder has declined, the SROK has declined, meaning that women are increasingly more likely than men to be the victims of intimate murder.
Dynamics
Marvin Wolfgang's classic study of 588 homicides in Philadelphia revealed that in the case of intimate partner homicide, the killing of men differs substantially from the killing of women. In the 47 cases in which wives killed husbands, Wolfgang concluded that 28 of the 47 husbands had precipitated their own deaths by striking a blow against the woman or showing and using a deadly weapon. This compared with only nine percent of wife killings that Wolfgang deemed "victim precipitated." In 38 of the 47 cases where husbands were killed by wives, Wolfgang found husbands had "strongly provoked" the killing. These findings on the gendered nature of intimate partner homicide have been replicated in numerous other studies.
Killing The Competition
As intimate relationships change, new partners can arrive on the scene. Sometimes women's new male partners compete with women's ex-lovers. At times these competitions end in lethal violence. As such, these so-called "love triangle" killings between competitors for the same person, can be seen as derivative of the conflict between sexual intimates, and particularly the tension surrounding women leaving one partner and developing a love interest elsewhere. In their classic and often-cited study entitled Homicide , Wilson and Daly remark that "Sexual jealousy and rivalry have been prominent in virtually every study of homicide motives."
Family Homicide
"Family homicide" refers to the willful killing of someone by a victim's relative by blood or marriage.
Parricide
Parricide, the killing of parents by their children, is a form of family homicide that has received scant attention in the extant literature. Kathleen Heide identifies three types of individuals who kill their parents: severely abused children, severely mentally ill children, and dangerously antisocial children. Among these three groups the "severely abused child" is most frequently encountered among the ranks of those who commit parricide. According to Mones, more than 90 percent of youths who commit parricide have been abused by their parents. Severely abused children who kill their parent(s) typically endure one or more forms of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, or they witness some combination of these abusive episodes within their families. Much less often individuals who kill parent(s) are suffering from serious mental illness to the point that they qualify as psychotic. Heide describes these people as follows: "Psychotic individuals have lost contact with reality. Their personalities are typically severely disorganized, their perceptions are distorted, and their communications are often disjointed. Their behavior may be inappropriate to the setting and characterized by repetitive, purposeless actions....They may experience hallucinations....and bizarre delusions." Finally, Heide notes the dangerously antisocial child, nowadays referred to as someone with a conduct disorder or antisocial personality disorder who does not suffer from delusions and hallucinations. Among the ranks of these offenders we may see those who kill their parents for personal gain.
Fratricide and Sororicide
Ewing notes that sibling killings are about as common as parricides. Most are committed by males and over 80 percent of the victims and perpetrators are adults. These forms of family homicide, like intimate partner homicides, are often preceded by a long history of domestic rivalry and unresolved conflicts. As in other forms of domestic homicide, the precipitating event is prefaced by a long-standing antagonism that is often exacerbated prior to the killing by a change in one of the sibling's circumstances. Ewing puts it as follows:
In many adult sibling homicides, perpetrators are dealing not only with unresolved childhood conflicts and the stress of living with a brother or sister but often trying to cope with a variety of other problems in living. Indeed, in many cases, these other stressors - such as unemployment, divorce, substance abuse, and illness- have forced the perpetrator into a situation of being financially dependent on parents and/or the sibling who is eventually killed.
Multiple Domestic Killings
Multiple domestic homicides involve various permutations and combinations of victims including intimate partners, competitors or love-triangle antagonists, family members including children, and the perpetrator him or herself. As such, these killings combine many of the features of intimate partner, love triangle, and family killings. However, multiple domestic killings also have a number of unique characteristics that warrant mention.
Homicide-Suicide
Homicide-suicide involves the killing of one or more persons followed soon after by the suicide of the perpetrator. It is usually men who kill their wives, ex-wives, lovers, and ex-lovers, sometimes in combination with their children. In their study of homicide-suicide in North Carolina from 1972-1977, Palmer and Humphrey found few women among perpetrators of homicide-suicide. Out of 90 homicide-suicides during this period only six percent were committed by females. Wolfgang's Philadelphia study found that out of 24 cases of homicide-suicide, only eight percent were committed by women. Woman battering is a significant antecedent to homicide-suicide. For example, Marzuk, Tardiff and Hirsch note:
While some murder-suicides occur shortly after the onset of "malignant jealousy," more often there has been a chronically chaotic relationship fraught with jealous suspicions, verbal abuse, and sub-lethal violence.
Sherry Currens et al (1991) examined the phenomenon of homicide-suicide occurring in Kentucky from 1985-1990. These researchers defined a homicide-suicide cluster as one or more homicides with the subsequent suicide of the perpetrator. The 67 homicide-suicide clusters accounted for six percent of all homicides during this period. Perhaps most significantly, 65 of the 67 perpetrators were male, and 58 of the 80 homicide victims were women. In 64 homicide-suicide clusters, the homicide victim and perpetrator were known to each other. Again, very significantly, in 47 of the 67 clusters the perpetrator was either a current husband (37 clusters), boyfriend (seven clusters) or a former husband (three clusters) of the homicide victim. Currens et al found that many homicide-suicides are preceded by a history of woman abuse. They note that "the typical perpetrator is a man married or living with a woman in a relationship mark