Domestic Violence in U.S. Rises Over Five Years, FBI Reports
Domestic violence in the United States saw an increase in the past five years according to a new report issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The FBI hopes the report is used by law enforcement agencies and the public to “form strategies to reduce and impede similar offenses in the future.”
The report reviewed statistics from 2020 through 2024 and found that domestic violence rose during the time frame, with the percentage of violent crimes involving domestic relationships rising from 25.6 percent in 2020 to 27.5 percent in 2024.
That includes 1.1 million domestic violence incidents and 11,000 murders. In three-quarters of the cases, the victims were female.
The report focused on violent crimes including murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault where the victim-to-offender relationship meets the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program’s domestic and family violence definition. The crimes were reported to the UCR Program by participating law enforcement agencies via the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).
Aggravated Assault Most Common Domestic Violence Crime
According to the report, aggravated assault was the most common crime in domestic violence cases. 31 percent of all reported aggravated assault were domestic in nature.
The most common weapons used in domestic violence crimes were personal weapons such as hands, feet, and fists. 13 percent of domestic violence crimes involved a firearm.
Nearly 80 percent of the domestic violence crimes occurred in the home.
The average age for both domestic violence victims and offenders was 32.
Teen Relationship Violence
The FBI also included an infographic on teen relationship violence. It found there were 70,523 incidents of teen relationship violence in 2024 alone, with nearly 80 percent of the victims being female. 73 percent of the cases involved teens who termed themselves boyfriend/girlfriend.
Simple assault made up about 61 percent of the reported teen crimes.
Advocates Speak Out
Advocates against domestic violence say the numbers are striking and are likely a fraction of the number of incidents that are occurring.
"We all know people who are currently in domestic violence relationships. We just don't know it because we don't talk about it," said Lariana Forsythe, CEO of CASA, a domestic violence shelter and advocacy organization in Pinellas County, Florida.