Literature

When Men Murder Women--Violence Policy Center Report
      --South Carolina ranks #2 in 2012 in the nation--however, this is based on women per capita. SC actually had the most women killed with 50 female homicide victims.
     --Nationally, 93% of female victims were murdered by someone they knew, and 62% of these were wives, common-in-law wives, ex-wives, or girlfriends of the offenders. This does not count those who were ex-girlfriends.
     --In South Carolina:
             -Average age of victim: 46 years old
             -86% of female victims were killed by someone they knew, 68% were killed by intimate partners


Help-Seeking for Intimate Partner Violence and Forced Sex in South Carolina
--Among women experience IPV, 53% sought community-based or professional services
--36.4% saw or talked to a doctor or nurse about the violence, 45.5% received mental health services, 10.9% sought the services of DV shelters, 16.4% attended support groups
     --Most found the contact was helpful, no matter the form of help
--Fewer than 10% of female victims seek services from battered women's shelters

Laws Mandating Reporting of Domestic Violence
--As few as 1 in 20 of women seeking medical attention are identified as having suffered domestic violence
--Mandated reporting can have an adverse effect, increasing violence from the abuser
--Health care providers can make other services and education available, and offer to aid in the reporting if the victim desires

Combating Domestic Violence: Findings from an Evaluation of a Local Domestic Violence Court
--Having a designated court decreased the amount of repeat arrests for DV offenders
--Consolidating resources in a rural area made those resources more available to both victims and offenders