Intimate femicide-suicide in South Africa: a cross-sectional study

Author: Mathews S / Abrahams N / Jewkes R / Martin LJ / Lombard C
Publication: Bull World Health Organ
Topics: Domestic Violence Gender Homicide International Prevention Suicide
Keywords: Adolescent Adult African Continental Ancestry Group Autopsy Crime Victims
Bibliographic information +

The authors randomly sampled mortality data from 25 mortuaries across South Africa to identify all homicides committed in 1999 of women over 13 years of age. Among other things, they found that suicide after killing an intimate female partner was more likely if the perpetrator owned a legal gun rather than not owning a legal gun. 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.