Laurie Graham Published in the North Carolina Medical Journal

Assistant Professor Laurie Graham and colleagues have a new paper published in the North Carolina Medical Journal that examines intimate partner homicides among North Carolina (NC) residents between 2011 and 2015. Using data from the North Carolina-Violent Death Reporting System (NC-VDRS), the study found that of the 2,299 homicides that occurred between 2011 and 2015, 350 were intimate partner homicides (0.9 per 100,000 person-years). Most (72.3%) intimate partner homicide victims were female. Among all female homicides, almost half (48.2%) were committed by intimate partners, while only 5.4% of all male homicides were committed by intimate partners. The highest rate of intimate partner homicide occurred among women aged 20-44 (2.1 per 100,000 person-years). Most victims were non-Hispanic (NH) white (54.0%), although rates for NH American Indian and NH black people were 1.8 and 2.0 times that among NH white people, respectively. Most victims were the suspect’s current partner. Firearms were the most common weapon used (62.6%). Future interventions focused on women aged 20-44, NH American Indian and NH black communities, and firearm access could be effective in preventing intimate partner homicides in NC. Geary, S., Graham, L. M., Moracco, K. E., Ranapurwala, S. I., Proescholdbell, S. K., & Macy, R. J. (2020). Intimate partner homicides in North Carolina: 2011-2015. North Carolina Medical Journal, 81(4).