Rates and Features of Detection Avoidance in Intimate Partner Femicide in Australia

Abstract

Despite known links with intimate partner femicide (IPF), rates of detection avoidance (DA) in IPF are unknown. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were undertaken using data compiled by the Domestic Violence Death Review Team (DVDRT). DA was evidenced in 43% of 100 IPF cases examined from Queensland Australia, between 2006 and 2019. DA IPFs were perpetrated by males between the ages of 36 and 45 years, in urban locations and more often involved unknown causes of death and escalating violence prior to the homicide. Offenders had histories of abuse, coercive control and other criminal behavior. Themes uncovered include DA offenders using isolation, discrediting the victim and monitoring her prior to the IPF as both abuse and DA. Offenders planned the homicide and DA, falsified the narrative of the death, and obstructed the police investigation. Results imply DA is common and impactful, even when revealed. Implications for practitioners include recognizing high rates of DA in IPF cases.