Violent deaths among individuals subject to domestic violence protection orders in King County, Washington, USA, 2014-2020.

Abstract

Objectives: Individuals (ie, respondents) subject to domestic violence protection orders have threatened or engaged in one form of violence perpetration and may be at increased risk for experiencing others forms of violence, including violent death.

Methods: Using a cohort of granted domestic violence protection orders in King County, Washington, USA, from 2014 to 2020 (n=3543), we calculated standardised mortality ratios for violent death, including suicide, homicide, legal intervention and undetermined intent, comparing domestic violence protection order respondents to King County residents adjusting for year, age, sex, and race and ethnicity through indirect standardisation.

Results: There were 66 deaths among domestic violence protection order respondents; 25.8% were violent deaths and 52.9% of violent deaths involved firearms. The standardised mortality ratio for violent death was 3.71 (95% CI: 2.16 to 5.93) among domestic violence protection order respondents compared with King County residents.

Conclusion: The domestic violence protection order process may provide an opportunity for referrals to services to address shared risk factors for violence perpetration and victimisation.