Domestic Violence Defined

Domestic Violence is when one person in an intimate relationship is able to get and maintain power and control over the other person. It’s a pattern of behaviors, these behaviors include physical, verbal, emotional, and sexual abuse in order to control or change the behavior of his/her partner.

Domestic Violence can lead to serious physical harm, emotional and mental illness, and even death.

Signs of Domestic Violence

Domestic violence is a rising issue here in the United States. It can impact anyone, regardless of an individual's ethnic background, social status, sex or sexual orientation. Listed below are signs that may indicate you are in an abusive relationship. If you or someone you know needs help, our 24 hour Domestic Hotline is available toll free 1(888) 774-2900.

• Have you ever been physically hurt, such as being kicked, pushed or punched, by your partner or ex-partner?
• Has your partner ever used the threat of hurting you to get you to do something?
• Has your partner tried to keep you from seeing your family, going to school, or doing other things that are important to you?
• Do you feel like you are being controlled or isolated by your partner?
• Have you ever been forced by your partner to have sex when you did not want to?
• Has your partner ever insisted on having unsafe (not using protection for sexually transmitted infections or HIV) sex?
• Is your partner very jealous and always questioning whether you are faithful?
• Does your partner regularly blame you for things that you could not control or insult you?
• Are you ever afraid of your partner or of going home? Does he/she make you feel unsafe?

National Statistics on Domestic Violence

The following statistics are based on national average.

• One out of every four women will experience domestic violence sometime in their lifetime.
• Every fifteen seconds a woman is abused by her partner.
• Every day, three victims die as a result of Domestic Violence.
• Gay and Bisexual men experience domestic violence at an equal rate to heterosexual women.
• One in three teenagers report knowing a friend or peer who has been hit, punched, slapped, strangled, or physically hurt by their partner. (Liz Claiborne Study on Teen Dating Violence, 2005)