Louisiana ranked second in the nation in the rate of women murdered by men, with a rate of 2.64 per 100,000, according to the new Violence Policy Center (VPC) study When Men Murder Women: An Analysis of 2017 Homicide Data.
This is the ninth year in a row that Louisiana has ranked in the top 10 states for the rate of women murdered by men.
Each year the VPC releases this report in advance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October. This year, its release comes following the February 2019 expiration of the federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). A bill to reauthorize VAWA has passed the U.S. House and is awaiting action in the Senate.
The study uses 2017 data, the most recent year for which information is available. The study covers homicides involving one female murder victim and one male offender, and uses data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Supplementary Homicide Report.
The study found that nationwide, 92 percent of women killed by men were murdered by someone they knew and that the most common weapon used was a gun.
VPC Legislative Director Kristen Rand states, “Women are most likely to be murdered with a gun wielded not by a stranger but by someone they know. In many instances the murderer is an intimate partner of the victim. It is important to know these facts in order to identify effective strategies to prevent homicides against women. One critical step is for the U.S. Senate to follow the lead of the House of Representatives and pass legislation to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.”
Interim Executive Director of States United to Prevent Gun Violence Karen Abrams states,“We are appalled at the rates at which women continue to be shot and killed by men. But, when it comes to gun violence against women we have policy tools that work. Our grassroots gun violence prevention leaders know this. Which is why they push tirelessly at the state and local levels to pass and strengthen laws that keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers. These are solutions that make change happen.”
To view the full report, please visit http://vpc.org/studies/wmmw2019.pdf