DOI: 10.3886/icpsr03501
title: Intimate Partner Homicide in California, 1987-2000
title: Archival Version

description: Since 1976, the United States has witnessed a steady and
precipitous decline in intimate partner homicides. This study builds
on the work of Dugan et al. (1999, 2000) and Browne and Williams
(1989) by examining, in greater detail, the relationship between
intimate partner homicide and gender, race, criminal justice system
response, and domestic violence services. Specifically, the study
examines the net effect of criminal justice system response and
federally-funded domestic violence shelters on victimization of white,
African American, and Hispanic males and females. This study used
aggregated data from the 58 counties in California from 1987 to
2000. Homicide data were gathered by the State of California
Department of Justice, Criminal Justice Statistics Center. Data on
domestic violence resources were obtained from the Governor's Office
of Criminal Justice Planning, Domestic Violence Branch, in the form of
detailed reports from domestic violence shelters in the state. Based
on these records, the researchers computed the number of
federally-funded shelter-based organizations in a given county over
time. Data on criminal justice responses at the county level were
gathered from the State of California Department of Justice, Criminal
Justice Statistics Center. These data included domestic violence
arrests and any convictions and incarceration that followed those
arrests. The researchers disaggregated these criminal justice system
measures by race and gender. In order to account for population
differences and changes over time, rates were computed per 100,000
adults (age 18 and older).
description: Since 1976, the United States has witnessed a
 steady and precipitous decline in intimate partner homicides. At first
 glance, the trend appears to signal success brought about by two
 decades of criminal justice policy improvement and domestic violence
 resource enhancement. However, much work and scientific analysis
 remain to be done. This study builds on the work of Dugan et
 al. (1999, 2000) and Browne and Williams (1989) by examining, in
 greater detail, the relationship between intimate partner homicide and
 gender, race, criminal justice system response, and domestic violence
 services. Specifically, the study examines the net effect of criminal
 justice system response and federally-funded domestic violence
 shelters on victimization of white, African American, and Hispanic
 males and females. This study is unique in its focus on rural and
urban settings and Hispanic victims.
description: This study used aggregated data from the 58
 counties in California from 1987 to 2000. Focusing on California
 permitted the researchers to obtain reliable and standardized data for
 a large number of counties featuring diversity in population, in rural
 and urban characteristics, and with a variety of domestic violence
 criminal justice responses and shelter resources. Homicide data were
 gathered by the State of California Department of Justice, Criminal
 Justice Statistics Center. These data provided detailed information on
 homicides committed in California from 1987 to 2000, such as whether
 the victim and offender were intimate partners, the county of the
 homicide, whether the offenders and victims were adults, and the race
 and gender of victims and offenders. Data on domestic violence
 resources were obtained from the Governor's Office of Criminal Justice
 Planning, Domestic Violence Branch, in the form of detailed reports
 from domestic violence shelters in the state. Because only recent data
 (starting in 1997) were available in machine-readable format, the
 researchers used the hardcopy reports from the individual
 shelter-based service providers in the state. State records indicated
 the number of years federal funding was provided to each community
 organization. Based on these records, the researchers computed the
 number of federally-funded shelter-based organizations in a given
 county over time. Data on criminal justice responses at the county
 level were gathered from the State of California Department of
 Justice, Criminal Justice Statistics Center. Arrests for violation of
 California penal code 273.5 were classified as domestic violence
 arrests. Data were gathered on any convictions and incarceration that
 followed an arrest for domestic violence. Incarcerations included
 prison sentences, jail sentences, and sentences to probation that
 included some jail time. The researchers disaggregated these criminal
 justice system measures by race and gender. In order to account for
 population differences and changes over time, rates were computed per
100,000 adults (age 18 and older).
description: Variables include county name, whether the county
 was rural or urban, year, and number of federally-funded shelters in
 the county. Additional county-level variables are provided for the
 county's entire adult population, white adults, Black adults, Hispanic
 adults, males, females, white males, Black males, Hispanic males,
 white females, Black females, and Hispanic females. These variables
 are population, number of intimate partner homicide victims, number of
 non-intimate partner homicide victims, intimate partner homicide
 victimization rate, non-intimate partner homicide victimization rate,
 number of domestic violence arrests, number convicted, sentenced,
 sentenced to prison, sentenced to probation, sentenced to probation
 with jail, and sentenced to jail after an arrest for domestic
 violence, domestic violence arrest rate, one-year lagged domestic
 violence arrest rate, conviction (following domestic violence arrest)
 rate, one-year lagged conviction rate, incarceration (following
 domestic violence arrest) rate, and one-year lagged incarceration
 rate. Other variables are number of shelters per 100,000 women, Black
 women, Hispanic women, non-white women, and white women, one-year
 lagged shelter rate for all women, Black women, Hispanic women, and
 white women, non-white male domestic violence arrest rate, non-white
 male conviction and incarceration rates (following arrest for domestic
 violence), one-year lagged non-white male domestic violence arrest
 rate, one-year lagged non-white male conviction and incarceration
 rates (following arrest for domestic violence), and non-white female
intimate and non-intimate partner homicide victimization rates.
description: Response Rates: Not applicable.
description: Presence of Common Scales: None.
description: Datasets: 
DS1: Intimate Partner Homicide in California, 1987-2000
description: All counties in California from 1987 to 2000.