By Numbers:

• Family violence accounted for one quarter of all victims of violent crime in Canada
• 85% of victims were female
• 76% of all homicide-suicides in Canada involved family members , and over 50% were committed by male partners or ex-spouses
• Violence was not an isolated incident, with 61% of those reporting spousal violence in current or previous relationships stating that violence occurred on at least one occasion prior to police contact
• 49% of women experienced continued violence after they separated, with 34% of women stating that the violence increased in severity and frequency after they’d separated
• Factors increasing the risk of spousal violence included: being young, in a common-law relationship or new relationship of less than three years, being aboriginal, or having a partner who was a heavy drinker
• 37% of women who had experienced spousal violence reported increased emotional consequences:  fearful for themselves and their children, problems sleeping, low self esteem, depression & anxiety attacks, problems relating to the opposite sex
• 83% of women and 60% of men confided in informal supports like family or friends to discuss what was happening in their relationship
• 50% of all kids in families with spousal violence were witnesses to the violence, with 44% of them having a parent that was physically injured
• Children who witnessed violence often displayed elevated rates of depression, aggression, delinquency, and other emotional problems