NCJ Number
229083
Journal
Homicide Studies Volume: 13 Issue: 4 Dated: November 2009 Pages: 339-354
Date Published
November 2009
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This study identified differences between perpetrators of intimate partner homicide (IPH) who did and did not commit a self-destructive act ( e.g., a suicide or a suicide attempt) following the homicide.
Abstract
Although the two groups largely resembled one another, differences in the perpetrators who did and did not commit a self-destructive act following the homicide were found. Men who committed a self-destructive act following IPH were more likely to be unemployed, to harbor a fear of abandonment, to be emotionally dependent on the victim, to have a depressive disorder, and to have expressed suicidal threats shortly before the offense. Similarities between both types of perpetrators were the prevalence of violence against intimate partners, possessiveness toward the intimate partner, and suspected infidelity by the intimate partner. Based on these findings, preventive measures for IPH and IPH followed by suicide should focus on the existence of intimate partner violence and signs of premeditation, including previous suicide threats. Estrangement from the intimate partner is an additional risk factor when the terminated relationship involved dependence and possessiveness. The study is based on an analysis of clinical records of a forensic psychiatric hospital in the Netherlands (the Pieter Baan Center) for the period 1980-2006. During this period, the center evaluated 341 men accused of attempted or completed IPH. Assuming that the lethality of the act was beyond the influence of the perpetrator, attempted homicides were included in the analysis, 44 men engaged in a self-destructive act after the completed or attempted IPH, and 297 men perpetrated or attempted IPH without a subsequent self-destructive act. Although the individuals included in the study were unconvicted at the time their data were recorded, later examination of court files confirmed that all were subsequently convicted of homicide. 2 tables, 1 note, and 81 references