A new report on the impact of the pandemic on domestic violence suggests an increase of at least 8.1% in incidents during orders to stay at home.
The report, released on Wednesday by the National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice (CCJ), analyzed the results of 18 studies that examined the frequency of complaints of domestic violence before and during the pandemic. The researchers used data collected by law enforcement agencies, health agencies, domestic violence hotlines and “other administrative documents”, according to a press release.
The CCJ found that domestic violence incidents increased by 8.1% in the U.S. after blocking orders were issued – although the actual percentage is likely to be higher, as more incidents may be happening behind closed doors during requests to stay in House. In addition, any friends or family members who may have reported such incidents were probably separated from the victims or were not around to witness them.
‘HOME IMPROVEMENT STAR’ HAPPENED AT TWO FEES IN THE CASE OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
“Our analysis confirms the initial fears we had at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Alex R. Piquero, lead author of the report and chairman of the Department of Sociology at the University of Miami, in a press release.
“Our analysis confirms the initial fears we had at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Alex R. Piquero, the report’s lead author and chair of the Department of Sociology at the University of Miami.
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The report’s authors also believe that the problem was exacerbated by rising unemployment, financial issues or alcohol abuse, among other stressors potentially caused by the pandemic.
“The pandemic has thrown many of the most vulnerable people in our society into especially challenging circumstances, so these findings should not surprise us,” wrote CCJ director Thomas Abt in Wednesday’s statement. “Policy makers and researchers must work to better understand the impacts of the pandemic and provide additional resources for the prevention of domestic abuse and services for victims, particularly for those who are most isolated and at risk.”
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It is not just a problem in the United States. The CCJ report found that while the reports increased 8.1% in the United States, the average increase among all the countries studied in the report – Mexico, Italy, Sweden, Australia, Argentina, India and the USA – was slightly lower, 7.9%. But domestic violence has always been a global problem, experts said.
The United Nations had previously warned of the “devastating impact” that the pandemic can have on cases of sexual and domestic violence worldwide, especially against women and girls, after preliminary studies in 2020. Calling this type of violence a “pandemic” shadow “on its own, the UN had already seen increases in the helpline and emergency calls in the first months of the global pandemic.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has also predicted an increase in cases of violence against women in several alerts since March 2020, citing reports of peak cases in the US, the UK and China, including one from Jingzhou, which recorded these cases tripling in February 2020 during the onset of the health crisis.