NCJ Number
188104
Journal
Trends and Issues Update Volume: 1 Issue: 8 Dated: December 1999 Pages: 1-4
Date Published
December 1999
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This report examines the extent to which intimate partner violence can currently be measured in Illinois, the limitations encountered in measuring this kind of violence, and efforts to improve data collection in this area.
Abstract
This report describes a few data collection systems that provide some measure of intimate partner violence in Illinois, but not without limitations. Recent changes in State law have mandated that the Illinois State Police (ISP) implement a new data collection system designed to track domestic violence cases; however, this system is in its preliminary stages and requires time to improve reporting compliance and consistency. Illinois law has required local law enforcement agencies to report domestic offenses to ISP since April 1996. From April to December 1996, 65,549 intimate partner offenses were reported to police in Illinois. ISP maintains a database of orders of protection issued by Illinois courts, as required by the Domestic Violence Act. In 1991, 32,702 orders of protection were recorded. By 1998, this number reached 53,957, an increase of 65 percent. The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, the Attorney General's Office, and the Department of Human Services provide financial and technical support to programs for victims of domestic violence. These agencies maintain records on the number of victims served. The data sets used for this report included information on victim-abuser relationships; they show different patterns of relationship types. In 1998, the offenses reported to ISP show that nearly 65 percent occurred between boyfriends and girlfriends, and 29 percent occurred between spouses. Overall, available data indicate that intimate partner violence is increasing in Illinois. There are efforts being made to improve the ability to identify intimate partner violence trends in Illinois. These efforts are briefly described in this report. 3 notes, 2 figures, and 1 table