October 12, 2001 ATLANTA (AP) - People who live in big cities are two to three times more likely to be killed by their spouses or lovers than people in small towns, the government says.
Women in the South and West are most at risk, according to the study of FBI data released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Partner slayings dropped overall by nearly half from 1981 to 1998, and slayings in which men were the victim dropped by two-thirds. The statistics mirror the nationwide drop in crime generally during the 1990s.
The study did not include the total number of slayings by a lover or spouse each year.
"Understanding the reasons for the decreases may help us identify better means of protecting those at risk," said Dr. Sue Binder, director of CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
The analysis of FBI homicide reports found rates of partner killings in cities with more than 250,000 people were two to three times higher than in those with fewer than 10,000.
In big cities, about one in 59,000 people is killed by a husband, wife, boyfriend or girlfriend each year, the data showed. In small towns, the rate is about one in every 156,000.
The CDC gave no explanation for the difference. Janet Carter, managing director of the Family Violence Prevention Fund, said cities can harbor people - particularly minorities - who are afraid to turn to the justice system for help.
"There just might not be as many places to turn," she said. The CDC also did not explain why far higher rates of deadly domestic violence show up in the South and Rocky Mountains.
In all, women were about 60 percent more likely to be killed by a partner than men, and blacks were more than four times more likely to be killed than whites.
For men and women alike, guns were the weapon of choice in the killings. About 60 percent of men and more than 64 percent of women were killed by firearms in disputes with spouses and lovers. Knives were a distant second.
Men are much more likely to own guns than women, a key reason why deadly domestic violence is committed more often against women, said Dr. Len Paulozzi, a CDC epidemiologist.
The study considered both same- and opposite-sex relationships.
Copyright 2001 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
