Intimate partner homicide — that is women who are killed by their partner — constitutes a significant proportion of the homicide statistics.

This is shown by a survey carried out by The Department of Forensic Medicine at Aarhus University, Denmark. As part of his PhD dissertation, forensic pathologist Asser Hedegard Thomsen from the department has reviewed all Danish homicide cases in the period 1992 to 2016 — a total of 1,417 homicides. The study has just been published in the international scientific journal Forensic Science International: Synergy.

Asser Hedegard Thomsen is not surprised that intimate partner homicides are so prevalent in the statistics. This corresponds to what he sees on a daily basis as a forensic pathologist at Aarhus University.

«Gang-related homicides takes up a lot of space in the media and on the political agenda, and of course they’re also serious, but compared to intimate partner homicides they actually account for a very small part of the total,» he says.

Men are also killed by a partner. During the twenty-five years in question, 79 men were killed by their partner. However, the research project from Aarhus University shows that the homicides often took place after prior threats and violence against the woman. This knowledge is also supported by international studies.

«You can read about it in the police reports, but it can also be observed from the forensic medicine examinations that clearly show the injuries to the women,» says Asser Hedegard Thomsen.

Story Source:
Materials provided by Aarhus University. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.