Intimate Partner Homicide in the Times of Covid-19 in Slovenia

Abstract

The Covid-19 epidemic and the measures employed to tackle it have affected (inter alia) intrapersonal relationships and family life. This paper explores how those changed circumstances correlate with the patterns of intimate partner homicide (IPH) in Slovenia. For that purpose, we examine the recent IPH trends and compare them to trends in homicide in general. In the second part of the paper, we look qualitatively into all the cases of IPH that have allegedly occurred during the Covid-19 epidemic in Slovenia and that have been reported in online newspapers. The preliminary investigation into homicides committed during the Covid-19 epidemic reveals that intimate partner killings are likely to have occurred with more frequency, while their patterns have not been substantially changed.