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Homicide-suicide as domestic violence: A case report with a little literature review
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The majority of literature on homicide-suicide addresses the fact that victims are predominantly female, and offenders are typically adult males (older than the victims) who share a familial, marital, or consortial relationship with them. The probability of fatalities involving murder-suicides in the bedrooms of middle-class households is higher. We present a case where an adolescent domestic helper strangled his landlady, twice his age, only to commit suicide by hanging thereafter. We go on to discuss homicide-suicide by servants outside the consortial relationship and the possible reasons for it in the Nepalese context.
Intimate partner homicide (IPH) is a tragic event. Studies involving the comparison between IPH and intimate partner homicide-suicide (IPH-S) are scarce, with few studies in Portugal about this issue. The current study aims to compare IPH and IPH-S perpetrators, the victim–perpetrator relationships dynamics, and homicide circumstances. The data was collected through the analysis of 78 judicial processes of IPH that occurred in Portugal, between 2010 and 2015. Of the cases, 51 were IPH, 20 were IPH-S cases, and seven were attempted suicide cases, being perpetrated in 84.6% (n = 66) for male perpetrators. Suicide after intimate homicide were all committed by men. All judicial processes analyzed refer to heterosexual relationships. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to compare the groups concerning perpetrator and victim sociodemographic characteristics, victim-perpetrator dyadic dynamics, and crime circumstances. The results show mostly common trends between the two groups with some differentiating factors when compared individually (e.g., perpetrator professional status, criminal records). Regression logistic analysis showed no differences between IPH and IPH-S.
Death by homicide-suicide or dyadic death is rare, with the nature of the death varying from case to case. The perpetrators are usually males and most often use weapons available in their vicinity to commit a crime. This case presents an instance of dyadic death using multiple methods to kill the intimate partner, followed by mirror imaging of similar injuries on himself and finally committing suicide by hanging. This case depicts a rare case of murder-suicide in which both victims and perpetrators died by different methods but a mirroring pattern of fatal injuries was observed on each intimate partner. The non-fatal injury for one was a facsimile of a fatal injury on a corresponding intimate partner.
Homicide–suicide is an event in which an individual murders one or more persons and then takes his/her own life. The present study aimed to assess the incidence of homicide-suicide in Italy over a 10-year period (between 2009 and 2018) and to compare its findings with national and international data. Furthermore, a time series analysis was carried out employing an autoregressive integrated moving average model. Data regarding homicide-suicide cases were collected from press agencies and four major Italian newspapers. In the considered time frame, 368 cases of homicide–suicide were identified, with a total of 808 deaths. Findings aligned with international data, highlighting that the murderer is typically an older male who, for romantic jealousy, kills with a firearm his current or former female partner. The average rate of homicide–suicides was 0.06%, showing an increase compared to the previous decades. In addition, the forecasting model predicted a further increase in cases in the coming years, highlighting the need to systematically gather data on this phenomenon.
Prevalence of homicide-suicides is difficult to determine in Greece due to the lack of a national tracking system. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of the homicide-suicide incidents in Greece over the past 13 years, and to determine the circumstances under which they occurred, as well as the characteristics of perpetrators and victims. Two Internet search engines (google and yahoo), as well as the search engine of the major national news websites, were surveyed to identify the number of homicide-suicide cases that occurred in Greece from January 2008 to December 2020. Over the study period, 36 homicide-suicide incidents occurred in Greece, resulting in 36 suicides and 41 homicides. The above incidents reflect an annual homicide-suicide rate of 0.02 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. Most perpetrators were male (88.9%), whereas most victims were female (80.6%). Spousal-consortial cases accounted for 52.7% and familial cases for 41.7% of the total number of incidents. The use of firearms (mostly shotgun) was the most common method of homicide and suicide (58.3% and 63.9%, respectively). Women killed only their children, while men committed homicide and suicide mainly in the context of a former or current intimate partnership with the victim. Our results are in line with international homicide-suicide data. The establishment of a national surveillance system for homicides-suicides would be of paramount importance as it would facilitate accurate recording, identification of risk factors and characteristics of potential victims and perpetrators and it could ultimately be an aid to the prevention of such tragic events.
The study presents the results of the analysis of the way in which the Romanian online media covered the cases of intimate partner femicide committed between 2011-2015. The term intimate partner femicide was used to designate all the homicide committed intentionally by a current or former intimate partner against the woman partner (wife, girlfriend, concubine). The information regarding the intimate partener femicide was identified with the help of Google Chrome search engine and some key words. In the end, I identified N=2282 articles where 184 femicide cases committed between intimate partners. The analysis of the information regarding the intimate partner femicide cases was made with the help of a grid analysis structured on four dimensions: data regarding the violence act, data regarding the aggressor and victim, and data regarding the history of the relationship. The study highlights the journalists’ lack of interest in describing the context in which femicides occurred and the lack of correlation between the acts of domestic violence and intimate partner femicides. Moreover, few journalists include information regarding the way of contacting the institutions of victim protection and thus they do not use an important occasion to contribute to the readers’ information about the way in which they can interfere and help a victim.
This paper describes for the first time the epidemiology of homicide-suicide events in the whole of the United States using archival data. From 1968 to 1975, there were 2215 homicide-suicide events out of 123,467 homicides. The mean rate of homicide-suicide events was 0.134 per 100,000 per year. The murderers in these events differ from the typical murderer and the typical suicide in socio-demographic characteristics. Details of the characteristics of this population may be valuable for understanding the circumstances of homicide-suicide events and planning preventive measures.
Purpose:
There is a lack of robust empirical research examining mental disorder and homicide-suicide. Primary care medical records are seldom used in homicide-suicide research. The aims of this study were to describe the characteristics of offenders and victims; determine the prevalence of mental disorder and contact with mental health services and examine adverse events prior to the offence.
Methods:
This was a mixed-methods study based on a consecutive case series of offences in England and Wales occurring between 2006 and 2008. 60 homicide-suicides were recorded. Data sources included coroner's records, police files, General Practice (GP) and specialist mental health records, and newspaper articles.
Results:
The results show that most victims were spouse/partners and/or children. Most perpetrators were male (88 %) and most victims were female (77 %). The incidents were commonly preceded by relationship breakdown and separation. 62 % had mental health problems. A quarter visited a GP for emotional distress within a month of the incident. Few had been in recent contact with mental health services before the incident (12 %). Self-harm (26 %) and domestic violence (39 %) were common.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, GPs cannot be expected to prevent homicide-suicide directly, but they can reduce risk generally, via the treatment of depression and recognising the risks associated with domestic violence.
Pact suicides involving families have been reported in the scientific literature, but reports have been few from India. We report the case of a family, in which the father and three children had entered into a suicidal pact and executed it due to social reasons. A 41-year-old man, with no past psychiatric or substance use history, had reportedly come to know that his wife had been involved in an extra-marital affair. As expressed by him in a suicide note, he could not bear the humiliation due to this and also did not want his children to face disrespect from the society. He along with his daughter and 2 sons, aged 14, 12 and 11 years respectively, thus entered into a suicide pact to end their lives and wrote a suicide note. Man and two of his children consumed aluminum phosphide. However, the youngest son did not consume the poison and raised alarm, following which they were rushed for medical care. The father died, but the three children recovered completely. The case highlights the rare phenomenon of suicide pacts involving an adult and children.
This systematic review of population based studies of homicide followed by suicide was conducted to examine the associations between rates of homicide-suicide, rates of other homicides and rates of suicide. The review analysed 64 samples, including the case of an outlier (Greenland) that were reported in 49 studies. There was a significant association between the rates of homicide-suicide and those of other homicides in studies from the U.S.A. Outside the U.S.A. there was no clear association between homicide-suicide and other homicide but there was modest but significant association between rates of suicide and homicide-suicide. Homicide-suicide appears to be closer in epidemiological terms to homicide than suicide in regions with high rates of homicide and measures to reduce homicide in these regions may also reduce homicide-suicide.
Homicide-followed-by-suicide (referred to as "homicide-suicide") incidents are rare events but can have a profound impact on families and communities. A better understanding of perpetrator characteristics and how they compare with those of other homicide suspects and suicide decedents might provide insight into the nature of these violent acts. This report is based on 2003-2005 data from 17 US states participating in the National Violent Death Reporting System, a unique, incident-based, active surveillance system that integrates data on violent deaths from multiple sources. Of the 408 homicide-suicide incidents identified, most incidents were committed with a firearm (88.2%) and perpetrated by males (91.4%), those over 19 years of age (97.6%), and those of white race (77.0%); however, just over half of filicide (killing of children)-suicides (51.5%) were perpetrated by females. Over 55% of male homicide-suicide perpetrators versus 26.4% of other male suicide decedents had prior intimate partner conflicts (P < 0.001). In fact, having a history of intimate partner conflicts was even common among homicide-suicide perpetrators who did not victimize their intimate partners. Recognition of the link between intimate partner conflicts and homicide-suicide incidents and strategies involving collaboration among the court/legal and mental health systems might prevent these incidents.
To examine the incidence and patterns of intimate femicide-suicide in South Africa and to describe the factors associated with an increase in the risk of suicide after intimate femicide (i.e. the killing of an intimate female partner).
A cross-sectional retrospective national mortuary-based study was conducted at a proportionate random sample of 25 legal laboratories to identify all homicides committed in 1999 of women aged over 13 years. Data were collected from the mortuary file, autopsy report and a police interview.
Among 1349 perpetrators of intimate femicide,19.4% committed suicide within a week of the murder. Suicide after intimate femicide was more likely if the perpetrator was from a white rather than an African racial background (odds ratio, OR: 5.8; 95% confidence interval, CI: 1.21-27.84); was employed as a professional or white-collar worker rather than a blue-collar worker (OR: 37.28; 95% CI: 5.82-238.93); and owned a legal gun rather than not owning a legal gun (OR: 45.26; 95% CI: 8.33-245.8). The attributable fraction shows that 91.5% of the deaths of legal gun-owning perpetrators and their victims may have been averted if this group of perpetrators did not own a legal gun.
South Africa has a rate of intimate femicide-suicide that exceeds reported rates for other countries. This study highlights the public health impact of legal gun ownership in cases of intimate femicide-suicide.
Mercy killing is usually defined as intentional killing, often by family members or friends, with the stated intent to end perceived suffering. International evidence suggests that mercy killing typically involves an older man killing his ailing wife. In this study, we examined U.S. cases of mercy killing recorded by The Hemlock Society for the period 1960-1993. We found that the typical case involved an older woman being killed by a man, often her husband, with her poor health as the justification for the killing. A firearm was often used in these incidents. These patterns of mercy killing are consistent with patterns of homicide-suicide among older adults. Future research should seek to understand why women are typically the targets, and men the agents of mercy killing.
Intimate partner femicide-suicide (IPF-S) is an understudied subgroup of homicide-suicide deaths. Limited research has been conducted on IPF-Ss in the Eastern Mediterranean region. This study thus aimed to evaluate the characteristics of IPF-Ss that occurred in Türkiye between 2000 and 2019. IPF-Ss (n = 226) were extracted from electronic news stories. Data on victims, perpetrators, their relationships, and incidents of murder and suicide were collected. Descriptive statistics were calculated, and logistic regression analysis, mortality rates, and proportion of IPF-S in femicide calculations were conducted, showing that 13.3% of the femicides (n = 1699) were IPF-Ss. The IPF-Ss increased in 5-year intervals and were the highest during the 2015-2019 period (62.5%). Victims were married in 48.2% of the cases and 56% were aged <35 years, while 51.3% of the perpetrators were married and 52.6% were aged >40 years. In 42.0% of the cases, the perpetrator lived with the victim. Most (79.2%) of the cases took place in urban settlements, and the perpetrators used firearms in 84.1% of femicide cases. Firearm use was the most common method in cases where IPF-S was planned (OR = 2.98), when the IPF-S method was the same (OR = 29.6), and when the perpetrator committed suicide (OR = 7.82). In addition, it was found that firearm ownership is an important risk factor for IPF-S in Türkiye. Therefore, we recommend legislation to restrict firearms, as well as new measures to prevent illegal access to weapons.
Background
Extended suicide (also known as homicide-suicide) is an incident in which the perpetrator kills one or more people against their will and subsequently commits suicide. Victim and offender are often in a close relationship. In the case of a failed suicide, the offender has to anticipate extensive penal consequences (§ 211 ff. of the German criminal code). Objective
The aim of this study was to analyze homicide-suicide cases that occurred during a 21-year period (1994–2014) and to gain further information about the background of these incidents. Material and methodsIn a retrospective study, 58 cases of homicide-suicide investigated at the Institute of Legal Medicine, Goethe University in Frankfurt/Main, Germany were analyzed. Information about the incidents was obtained from the autopsy reports and from prosecution investigation files, as far as these were provided in accordance with data protection regulations. A literature survey and a homicide-suicide classification system were conducted and descriptive and statistical data analyses were performed. ResultsIn 58 cases a total of 74 victims were involved in which 93% of the offenders were male and 7% female. Of the victims 76% were female, 20% male and 4% remained unknown. Victims involved 17 children and 66% of the incidents included a spouse or intimate partner relationship. In 71% the crime scene took place in the domestic environment. The main triggering factors of the acts were marriage conflicts and financial problems. In 57% of the cases shooting was the method of choice. Conclusion
Due to the severity and consequences of the act, the term homicide-suicide rather than extended suicide should be employed in German linguistic usage because it is a homicide with subsequent suicide. The emphasis should be placed on the development of prevention.
Defence wounds are injuries which are suffered by an individual in an attempt to save oneself from assault or while defending oneself from the offenders. The nature of these wounds varies depending on the type of weapon used, amount of force and the state of consciousness at the time of attack. They are of great significance in differentiating between manner i.e. homicide, suicide and accident. Hence the present study was undertaken to differentiate the pattern of injuries during defence in Homicidal deaths. A total of 205 cases of homicide were studied. Defence wounds were present in 44.4% of cases, out of which 92.3% were male and 7.7% cases were females. Maximum number of cases (45.1%) with defence wounds belonged to age group 20-29 years. Defence wounds present in injuries caused by sharp cutting weapon with stab wound were less (36.55) as compared to hard and blunt object (57.1%). In 30.8% cases defence wounds were present in more than one part of body. In 17.6% of cases alcohol was found in the contents of the stomach on post-mortem examination. Conclusion: The occurrence of defence wounds varies according to social, political, economic and cultural conditions of the area. The region of Central India is an agricultural region where use of sharp instruments is more common. The institute where this study was conducted is a cultural capital where fights between various social groups take place frequently.
We examined 169 deceased persons and 76 homicide–suicide cases reported in Japan’s Kanagawa Prefecture from 1999 to 2011. The relationships between homicide–suicide perpetrators and homicide victims; the numbers of victims; their age, sex, causes and places of death; motivation; and the presence or absence of a suicide note were extracted and examined. The relationship between homicide–suicide perpetrators and homicide victims was examined based on findings from the following: 24 married couples (31%), 22 parents and children aged ≥18 years (29%), 19 parents and children aged ≤17 years (25%), seven families (9%), two couples (3%) and two miscellaneous relationships (3%). The perpetrators comprised 39 men and 40 women, with a mean age of 51.6 years. The victims comprised 39 men and 51 women, with a mean age of 35.4 years. In our study, approximately half of the perpetrators were female, which differed greatly from the reports from Western countries, where most perpetrators were male. Homicide–suicides among married couples accounted for a higher proportion of overall homicide–suicide deaths in Western countries. In Japan, homicide–suicide occurred more frequently with parents and children. Cases in which a mother committed suicide after having killed her young children accounted for a high proportion of these deaths. Because these events occur so frequently in Japan, we recommend making particular efforts to reduce homicide–suicides among mothers and children.
The present study investigated the scope, nature, and determinants of intimate partner femicide-suicides (IPFS) that occurred in Ghana during 1990 to 2009. All 35 reported cases of intimate partner homicide-suicides with female homicide victims that occurred during the study period were extracted from a major Ghanaian daily newspaper. Findings indicate that offenders were of lower socioeconomic background and tended to be older than their victims. The results further show that shooting with a firearm and hacking with a machete were the primary homicide methods, whereas self-inflicted gunshots and hanging were the dominant suicide methods. Results showed that suspicion of infidelity and sexual jealousy were core contributing factors in arguments, disputes, and altercations that preceded the femicide-suicides. Furthermore, estrangement and threatened divorce or separation by the female intimate partner was a major precipitant of femicide-suicides.
The psychology of homicidesuicide
Homicide-suicide is a rare but dramatic event, which can be defined as any homicide or homicide attempt, followed, in a very short period of time, by the suicide or the suicide attempt of the perpetrator of the facts. Classical authors used to link exclusively such episodes with melancholia and with misplaced altruism, nowadays it seems obvious that homicide-suicides may occur within various nosographic situations, and that an aggressiveness, sometimes hidden by rational pseudo-altruistic motivations is often detected. After having reminded the different types of homicidesuicides, the author tries and apprehends the complexity of such episodes. She underlines elements which permit to progress in the understanding of homicide followed by suicide.
The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence and characteristics of homicide-suicide events in Southwestern Croatia from 1986-2009 relying on autopsy reports of the Department of Forensic Medicine and Criminalistics, Rijeka and police records. A total of 17 cases involving 19 victims were identified. The perpetrators were most often men (82%), living in a spousal relationship with the victim. In 76.5% cases, suicide was committed immediately after homicide, and the same mean (most often an illegal firearm) was used for both. After examining the belongings of those involved in homicide-suicides, two factors differentiated our study from others, i.e. more victims and perpetrators were from the lower socioeconomic class and explosives were used in two homicide-suicide (12%) cases. The greater frequency of explosive used in homicide-suicide events may be a result of factors associated with the recent war fought in Croatia. These data prove the influence of sociological, historical and also political factors on the characteristics of a rare event such as homicide-suicide.
This systematic review of population based studies of homicide followed by suicide was conducted to examine the associations between rates of homicide-suicide, rates of other homicides and rates of suicide. The review analysed 64 samples, including the case of an outlier (Greenland) that were reported in 49 studies. There was a significant association between the rates of homicide-suicide and those of other homicides in studies from the U.S.A. Outside the U.S.A. there was no clear association between homicide-suicide and other homicide but there was modest but significant association between rates of suicide and homicide-suicide. Homicide-suicide appears to be closer in epidemiological terms to homicide than suicide in regions with high rates of homicide and measures to reduce homicide in these regions may also reduce homicide-suicide.
Murder–suicide is a relatively uncommon event but as reported by the New York Times, it has occurred and continues to occur yearly. Previous research has indicated that those who commit murder–suicides tend to be men, are in or have been in an intimate relationship with the victim, victims tend to be women, and a firearm is most likely to be used. This study uses a newspaper surveillance methodology to examine such cases. Articles from the New York Times as found in the New York Times Index were coded, analyzed, and examined. The cases, 166 in total, support the findings from prior research. The trend data was examined by cross tabulations and chi-square analysis. The findings suggest that murder–suicides are rare events and when they occur they usually involve a male perpetrator and an intimate partner victim who is either a wife or girlfriend with the event occurring in a private home. A firearm is the most commonly used method for both murders and suicides, particularly if there was more than one murder victim. The authors conclude by suggesting that future research should focus on using the forthcoming data resource in the CDC’s National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) to examine the occurrence of murder–suicide.
This study provides a retrospective review from the forensic files of the University Centre of Legal Medicine in Western Switzerland in Geneva, from January 1956 to December 2005. The studied homicide-suicide cases cover a period of half a century (50 years). As a rule, all police-ordered forensic examinations of violent death cases in the Canton of Geneva are conducted by the University Centre of Legal Medicine. All of the data necessary for an exhaustive retrospective study are thus readily available. During the period covered in this work, 228 homicides were perpetrated in Geneva. In 23 cases, the homicide was followed by the suicide of the aggressor. The 34 victims of these homicides (18 women, 1 man and 15 children) had either an intimate or filial relationship with the perpetrator. Most of the suicidal perpetrators were men that killed their spouses or intimate partners, with children as additional victims in some cases. Shooting was the most common means to kill, followed by stabbing. The majority of the victims and perpetrators were Swiss nationals. This retrospective study shows that in the last 50 years, homicide-suicide cases in the Canton of Geneva have been a rare and an episodic phenomena with a very variable frequency from 1 year to another.
To review the epidemiology, patterns, and major determinants of murder-suicide and to discuss the clinical and research strategies for identifying the individuals at greatest risk for this type of violence.
Data were obtained from English-language articles based on searches using MEDLINE (from 1966), PsychINFO (from 1967), and EMBASE (from 1974) programs. In addition, relevant articles, books, and monographs identified from the reference list of retrieved articles were reviewed.
Case-control studies, descriptive epidemiologic surveys, and case series were chosen for review.
Because of the limited scope of the pertinent research literature, all data relevant to the incidence, demographics, circumstances, and precipitants of murder-suicide were summarized by the authors.
Murder-suicide occurs with an annual incidence of 0.2 to 0.3 per 100,000 person-years and accounts for approximately 1000 to 1500 deaths yearly in the United States. The annual incidence of these events is relatively constant across industrialized nations and has not significantly changed over several decades. The principal perpetrators are young males with intense sexual jealousy, depressed mothers, or despairing elderly men with ailing spouses. The principal victims are female sexual partners or consanguineous relatives, usually young children. Clinical depression, specific motivations such as male sexual proprietariness or maternal salvation fantasies, and a history of previous suicide attempts are important in explaining underlying psychopathological mechanisms.
Murder-suicide occupies a distinct epidemiological domain that overlaps with suicide, domestic homicide, and mass murder. These events may be categorized into one of only several phenomenologic typologies that share similar demographics, motivations, and circumstances. Despite the disruption of families and communities caused by murder-suicide, there are no standardized operational definitions, validated taxonomic systems, or national surveillance networks for these events, all of which are needed to develop prevention strategies.
Intimate partner femicide–suicides in ghana: victims, offenders, and incident characteristics
- Adinkrah