Intimate partner homicide methods in heterosexual and homosexual relationships

From 1976 to 2001 over 50,000 people in the United States were victims of documented intimate partner lethal violence. In a study of intimate partner homicides in Chicago, Block and Christakos (1995) found that the weapon used varied based on the offender's gender. Relative to heterosexual partners, homosexual partners experience added stress due to a lack of social support of their relationships. The current study examined the effect of sex and sexual orientation of intimate partner homicide offenders on brutality of killing methods. Two hypotheses were formulated addressing the brutality of the murders as a function of the offender's sexual orientation and sex and the comparative rates of intimate partner homicides in various groups. The results provided robust support for both hypotheses and provide compelling evidence that there is a significant need for social support services to assist in reducing stressors in the gay and lesbian community.