Domestic and Sexual Violence Data Collection: A Report to Congress Under the Violence Against Women Act

The report discusses data-collection issues raised by panel members; Federal, State, and local agencies; and survey responses. It suggests further actions for improving and expanding data collection and reporting at the State and Federal levels. The study found that the Federal Government and the majority of States currently are collecting some statistics annually on these crimes; 35 States collect data on domestic violence, and 30 gather statistics on sexual violence. Some of these existing State programs can serve as working models for States that currently do not collect data on these crimes. For the future, the study identifies two issues that must be addressed. One is the variation across States -- in definitions, in types of victims included in reporting requirements, and in other elements -- that make it difficult to compare or aggregate data at a national level. A second issue is the need to include not only law enforcement statistics but data from other parts of the criminal justice system. The study emphasizes the need for collaborative data collection within the criminal justice system and from other key sources such as health care providers, employers, and schools. Appended supplementary information