Domestic Violence Domestic Violence
The Free Legal Dictionary

Any abusive, violent, coercive, forceful, or threatening act or word inflicted by one member of a family or household on another can constitute domestic violence. Domestic violence, once considered one of the most underreported crimes, became more widely recognized during the 1980s and 1990s. Various individuals and groups have defined domestic violence to include everything from saying unkind or demeaning words, to grabbing a person’s arm, to hitting, kicking, choking, or even murdering. Domestic violence most often refers to violence between married or cohabiting couples, although it sometimes refers to violence against other members of a household, such as children or elderly relatives. It occurs in every racial, socioeconomic, ethnic, and religious group, although conditions such as poverty, drug or alcohol abuse, and mental illness increase its likelihood. Studies indicate that the incidence of domestic violence among homosexual couples is approximately equivalent to that found among heterosexual couples.