By Tara N. Richards; Justin Nix; Bradley A. Campbell; Emily Wright; Caralin C. Branscum; Sheena L. Gilbert; Michaela Benson-Goldsmith; Emily K. Meinert

This final report for the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Award 2019-MU-MU-0095 describes a research project that used a variety of methods to evaluate the activities undertaken by stakeholders in the Minnesota Sexual Assault Initiative (MN SAKI) project, including the following four goals: eliminating untested sexual assault kits (SAKs); building capacity for criminal justice agencies to test SAKs, pursuing all investigatory leads, providing victim referrals, and prosecuting cases resulting from testing; and strengthening victim services. The authors also completed a cost-benefit analysis of MN SAKI Project’s SAK testing efforts. The report provides details and outcomes regarding each of the project goals; it discusses SAK outcomes, costs, and benefits, and discusses the project findings and implications. The document's appendixes provide the following documents: Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Report on the MN Law Enforcement Agency Survey of Untested Rape Kits as Required by SF0878; MDT Interview Questions; Stakeholder Informed Consent Form; Victim Reaction Form; Victim-Survivor Experiences Interview Guide; Victim-Survivor Informed Consent Form; ViCAP Interview Guide; Minnesota Track-Kit Patient Guide; and Minnesota SAKI Victim-Survivor Notification Guide. 
Final report to the U.S. National Institute of Justice, 2023. 218p.

By Jacob Bor, Atheendar S Venkataramani, David R Williams, Alexander C Tsai

Background Police kill more than 300 black Americans—at least a quarter of them unarmed—each year in the USA. These events might have spillover effects on the mental health of people not directly affected. Methods In this population-based, quasi-experimental study, we combined novel data on police killings with individual-level data from the nationally representative 2013–15 US Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) to estimate the causal impact of police killings of unarmed black Americans on self-reported mental health of other black American adults in the US general population. The primary exposure was the number of police killings of unarmed black Americans occurring in the 3 months prior to the BRFSS interview within the same state. The primary outcome was the number of days in the previous month in which the respondent’s mental health was reported as “not good”. We estimated difference-in-differences regression models—adjusting for state-month, monthyear, and interview-day fixed effects, as well as age, sex, and educational attainment. We additionally assessed the timing of effects, the specificity of the effects to black Americans, and the robustness of our findings. Findings 38 993 (weighted sample share 49%) of 103710 black American respondents were exposed to one or more police killings of unarmed black Americans in their state of residence in the 3 months prior to the survey. Each additional police killing of an unarmed black American was associated with 0·14 additional poor mental health days (95% CI 0·07–0·22; p=0·00047) among black American respondents. The largest effects on mental health occurred in the 1–2 months after exposure, with no significant effects estimated for respondents interviewed before police killings (falsification test). Mental health impacts were not observed among white respondents and resulted only from police killings of unarmed black Americans (not unarmed white Americans or armed black Americans). Interpretation Police killings of unarmed black Americans have adverse effects on mental health among black American adults in the general population. Programmes should be implemented to decrease the frequency of police killings and to mitigate adverse mental health effects within communities when such killings do occur.

Lancet 2018; 392: 302–10 

By The International Labour Association

Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) measures are key to building an inclusive, integrated and gender-responsive approach to preventing and eliminating violence and harassment in the world of work, a new International Labour Organization (ILO) report finds. According to the report more than one-in-five people in employment have experienced violence and harassment. This issue can affect all types of workplaces and can also occur during commutes, work-related trips, events, digital communications, social activities and in home-based offices. The report emphasizes that OSH frameworks tackle root causes of violence and harassment by addressing underlying risks such as inadequate work organization, factors related to specific tasks (e.g. working alone or constantly interacting with third parties), and working conditions that produce high stress levels that in turn lead to violence and harassment. Occupational safety and health frameworks that are based on workplace cooperation and social dialogue, mobilize both employers and workers to create working environments free from violence and harassment, the analysis says

Geneva, SWIT: ILO, 2024. 5p.

By Lucia Bird Ruiz Benitez de Lugo, Mouhamadou Kane, Jason Eligh and Lyes Tagziria

Across Africa, the GI-TOC has documented the proliferation of synthetic drugs, the resulting transformation of drugs markets and the escalation of drug-related harm. The nature of synthetic drug markets – with their low barriers to entry and flexible supply chains – makes them attractive to criminal actors and difficult to respond to. The response in Africa is further hampered by a dearth of evidence regarding the scope and scale of the synthetic drug market. This report explores how synthetic drug markets respond to programming seeking to disrupt them. Tramadol is used as a lens through which to consider existing response frameworks to synthetic drugs in the ECOWAS region and more broadly.

ENACT Africa, 2024.

By Gillian Isabelle Foster

Childhood maltreatment (CM) is known to affect an individual’s intimate relationships during adulthood. While previous reviews have focused on providing insight regarding the association between CM and various factors, there are still components that need to be updated in the literature. This systematic review provided young adults and researchers with accumulative, empirical evidence and updated the information in the existing literature regarding how childhood maltreatment consequently has an influence on IPV, depression, and intimacy problems in intimate relationships during adulthood. Platforms were systematically searched between the years 2019 and 2022. An initial search revealed a total number of 106 studies and thirty-one articles were included in the current systematic review. A mixed-methods approach was used for the analysis of the study. Results show that CM has a positive association with IPV, depression and intimacy problems. More studies need to focus on the following factors: neglect, narrower dynamics, and potential mediators.

Canada, University of Manitoba. 2024, 34pg

By  Iliadis Mary, Harris Bridget, Vakhitova Zarina, Woodlock Delanie, Flynn Asher, Tyson Danielle

Police body-worn camera (BWC) technologies—affixed to a vest, sunglasses or cap—are deployed by all Australian police agencies, including in frontline responses to domestic and family violence (DFV). This paper presents the findings from the first Australian study focused on how women DFV victim-survivors view and experience BWCs in police call-outs and legal proceedings. Informed by a national survey of 119 victim-survivors, it explores two key concerns relating to the potential consequences of BWC footage: (1) it may facilitate misidentification of the primary aggressor, and (2) perpetrators may use the BWC to present (false) evidence of themselves as blameless. 

Australia, Australian Institute of Criminology. 2024, 15pg

By Mladenova, Radmila

Drawing on a number of paradigmatic works of art, the book explores the motif of ‘gypsy’ child-theft and its visualisations. The analytical focus is on the colour coding of bodies in texts and images and their racialised/anti-gypsy uses. Offering a comprehensive survey of the motif’s adaptations to different visual media, the author elaborates on its multiple layers of meaning and functions. The analysis starts with a critical review of Cervantes’ tale “La gitanilla”, moving through seventeenth-century Dutch history painting to take a cursory look at nineteenth-century printed images, and end up with an annotated filmography of 49 cinematic works.

Heidelberg: Heidelberg University Publishing (heiUP), 2019. 122p.

By Kirsty S Lee, Dieter Wolke, Till Bärnighausen, Lucienne Ouermi, Mamadou Bountogo, Guy Harling

Background Sexual victimisation and peer victimisation are pervasive and increase risk for mental illness. Longitudinal studies that compare their unique and cumulative effects are scarce and have been done predominantly in highincome countries. The aims of this study were to examine the prevalence, prospective associations, and gender differences in sexual and peer victimisation and mental health in a low-income, African setting. Methods In this prospective cohort study, data were obtained from the 2017 ARISE Adolescent Health Study, a population-representative, two-wave, prospective study of adolescents (aged 12–20 years) from Burkina Faso. A random sample of adolescents was drawn from ten villages, selected to capture the five main ethnic groups, and from one of the seven sectors of Nouna town, Burkina Faso, at two timepoints: Nov 12 to Dec 27, 2017, and Nov 15 to Dec 20, 2018. Standardised interviews were conducted in French or a local language by trained researchers. We measured victimisation exposure as sexual victimisation, peer victimisation, and polyvictimisation, using lifetime frequency of exposure, and we measured mental health symptoms and disorders using the Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale, the Primary Care Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder screen IV and 5, and a question on lifetime selfharm and number of incidents in the past year. We calculated prevalence of victimisation and mental health symptoms and disorders at the two timepoints, and we used lifetime victimisation at the first timepoint to predict mental health at the second timepoint using logistic and negative binomial regressions. Gender differences were examined using interaction terms. Findings Of 2544 eligible adolescents, 1644 participated at time 1 and 1291 participated at time 2. The final sample with data at both timepoints included 1160 adolescents aged 12–20 years (mean 15·1, SE 0·2), of whom 469 (40·4%) were girls and 691 (59·6%) were boys. The majority ethnic group was Dafin (626 [39·1%]), followed by Bwaba (327 [20·5%]), Mossi (289 [16·0%]), Samo (206 [13·0%]), Peulh (166 [9·7%]), and other (30 [1·6%]). After survey weight adjustment, sexual victimisation (weighted percentages, time 1, 256 [13·8%] of 1620; time 2, 93 [7·2%] of 1264) and peer victimisation (weighted percentages, time 1, 453 [29·9%] of 1620; time 2, 272 [21·9%] of 1264) were common, whereas polyvictimisation was more rare (weighted percentages, time 1, 116 [6·6%] of 1620; time 2, 76 [5·7%] of 1264). Longitudinally, sexual victimisation was associated with probable clinical disorder (adjusted odds ratio 2·59, 95% CI 1·15–5·84), depressive symptoms (adjusted incidence rate ratio [aIRR] 1·39, 95% CI 1·12–1·72), and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (aIRR 2·34, 1·31–4·16). Peer victimisation was associated with symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (aIRR 1·89, 1·13–3·17) and polyvictimisation was associated with depressive symptoms (aIRR 1·34, 1·01–1·77). Girls reported more sexual victimisation (weighted percentages, 130 [17·3%] of 681 vs 126 [11·4%] of 939), boys reported more peer victimisation (weighted percentages, 290 [33·1%] of 939 vs 163 [25·2%] of 681), and there was a significant interaction between lifetime victimisation and gender for probable clinical disorder (F [degrees of freedom 7, sample 376] 2·16; p=0·030). Interpretation Sexual and peer victimisation were common in the study setting and increased risk for mental health problems. Adolescent girls who have been sexually victimised are especially at risk of mental health problems. Interventions targeting sexual and peer violence in low-income settings are needed.  

Lancet Psychiatry 2024; 11: 134–42

By Southern Poverty Law Center

Access to safe, stable housing is a human right. In the United States, however, the deprivation of this right leads to inequitable housing access. As a result, in addition to people with disabilities and members of the LGBTQ+ community, people of color — especially Black people — are more likely to experience homelessness or be at risk of homelessness. Compounding this issue, people of color and people with disabilities are also overrepresented in the criminal legal system because of mass incarceration. This intersection of housing inaccessibility and criminalization has resulted in the pernicious practice of the criminalization of people experiencing homelessness, a pressing issue across the country — including in the Deep South. In 2023, for example, Georgia enacted a law that forces cities and other localities to enforce bans on public camping, putting thousands of Georgians living unsheltered at risk of arrest for performing basic survival activities like rest, eating and asking for help.

Montgomery, AL Southern Poverty Law Center, 2024

By Bill McCarthy and John Hagan

There is now a sizable literature on connections between homelessness, crime, and criminal legal system contact. We review studies on these relationships, focusing mostly on links between the adversity that often characterizes homelessness—the need for shelter, food, and income—and offending, victimization, and involvement with the criminal legal system. We concentrate on multivariate studies from the United States and Canada and consider research on youth and adults. We begin with a short discussion of some of the challenges of studying these relationships. We follow our review of research on homeless conditions with a summary of research that has used data from homeless samples to advance a broad array of explanations of crime; a collection that includes strain, routine activities and lifestyle exposure, differential association, social control, rational choice, life course, and criminal capital theories.

Annual Review of Criminology, Volume 7, Page 257 - 281

By David Hureau, Theodore Wilson, Hilary Jackl, Jalon Arthur, Christopher Patterson, Andrew Papachristos

Gun violence is a leading cause of premature death and a driver of racial disparities in life expectancy in the United States. Community-based interventions are the foremost policy strategy for reducing gun violence without exacerbating harm associated with criminal justice approaches. However, little is known about the interventionist workforce. In 2021, we used a researcher-guided survey to obtain a near-census of Chicago violence interventionists (n = 181, 93% response rate). Workers were mostly male (84%) and Black (80.9%), with a mean age of 43.6 years. Interventionists commonly experienced work-related exposure to violence and direct victimization. A total of 59.4% witnessed someone being shot at, whereas 32.4% witnessed a victim struck by gunfire. During work hours, 19.6% were shot at, while 2.2% were nonfatally shot. Single-year rates of gun violence victimization exceeded those of Chicago police. Results suggest that investment in community violence intervention should prioritize improving worker safety and reducing violence exposure while developing support for vulnerable frontline practitioners

United States, Sciences Advances Research Article. 2022, 7pg

By Julie Freccero, Audrey Taylor, Sarah Chynoweth, Justine DeSilva

Children and youth experiencing commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) often have some form of engagement with the child welfare system. Safe and stable housing is vital to minimize vulnerability to CSE, help survivors recover, and reduce revictimization. Yet housing and shelter are among the top service gaps reported by agencies serving trafficking survivors in San Francisco, a high density area for CSE. To address this disparity, in 2019, a coalition of agencies developed Family And Me (FAM), a new model of foster care designed to meet the needs of youth who have experienced or are at risk of CSE in the San Francisco Bay Area. The goal was to establish an evidence-based, youth-centered model of care that could be scaled throughout the State of California and beyond. The 3.5-year FAM pilot aimed to improve the health, safety, and well-being of youth affected by CSE and to increase the knowledge, capacity, and retention rates of the caregivers who support them by offering a range of enhanced support services for both youth and their caregivers. However, due to numerous challenges, such as COVID-19 restrictions and recruitment barriers, the FAM collaborative was only able to implement a portion of the original FAM model.

Berkeley, CA: Human Rights Center at UC Berkeley School of Law, 2022. 40p.

By The World Health Organization

This report focuses on the interpersonal violence that accounts for most acts of violence against children, and includes child maltreatment, bullying and other types of youth violence, and intimate partner violence (1). Although childhood exposure to interpersonal violence can increase the risk for subsequent selfdirected violence (including suicide and self-harm) (2) and the likelihood of collective violence (including war and terrorism) (3) – and similar root causes underlie all three forms of violence (3,4) – these forms of violence are not covered by the report.

Geneva, SWIT: WHO, 2020. 352p.

By Naomi Pfitzner · Kate Fitz-Gibbon · Sandra Walklate · Silke Meyer · Marie Segrave

This open access book brings together leading international violence researchers to examine the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on experiences of, and responses to, domestic and family violence. In April 2020 the United Nations predicted that for every three months the COVID-19 lockdowns continued an additional 15 million cases of domestic violence would occur worldwide, termed the "shadow pandemic". Drawing on empirical work situated within an international context, this book presents evidence alongside country specific case studies to provide a global exploration of how women’s insecurity increased during this global health crisis at the same as their access to support services reduced. It provides a timely analysis of the degree to which the pandemic and associated government restrictions impacted on women’s experiences of violence with particular attention to changes in its prevalence and severity, and in system and service responses to women’s help-seeking. In addition, the differential impacts of the pandemic in relation to the experiences of priority cohorts, including violence experienced by children and temporary migrant women is also explored. The key focus is on the nature, extent, and responses to the COVID-19 pandemic on service delivery, accessibility of support, and access to justice for women experiencing domestic and family violence.

Cham, Springer Nature (palgrave Pivot), 2023. 150p.

By Katherine Millar, James Shires, and Tatiana Tropina

Multilateral processes on cybersecurity have recently begun to include official statements drawing attention to its gendered dimensions. Several delegations participating in the United Nations Open Ended Working Group (OEWG) on developments in the field of information and telecommunications in the context of international security have stated the need for gender mainstreaming into cyber norm implementation and gender-sensitive capacity building, as well as a better understanding of the linkages between cybersecurity and gender equality frameworks. However, questions remain about the overall application of gender perspectives to cybersecurity, as well as what kinds of action are needed to effectively implement a gender approach to cybersecurity and turn those goals into reality. To tackle this knowledge gap, this report outlines the relevance of gender norms to cybersecurity. It draws on existing research, supplemented by stakeholder and expert interviews, to assess gender-based differences in the social roles and interaction of women, men and non-binary people of all ages reflected in the distribution of power (e.g. influence over policy decisions and corporate governance), access to resources (e.g. equitable access to education, wages or privacy protections), and construction of gender norms and roles (e.g. assumptions regarding victims and perpetrators of cyber-facilitated violence). Overall, gender norms inform cybersecurity in two ways. First, gender constructs individual identities, roles and expectations within cybersecurity and broader society, such as the frequent association of technical expertise with men and masculinity. Second, gender operates as a form of hierarchical social structure. This means that activities and concepts associated with masculinity, such as technical expertise, are often, but not always, valued over those associated with women and femininity, such as communications expertise or equality, diversity and inclusion initiatives. To understand how gender shapes specific cybersecurity activities, this report proposes a new cyber-centric framework based on the three pillars of design, defence and response, aligned with prevalent perspectives among cybersecurity practitioners and policymakers. In each of these three pillars, the research identifies distinct dimensions of cyber-related activities that need to be considered from a gender perspective.

Geneva, Switzerland: United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research , 2021. 80p.

By Nancy Lombard and katy Proctor

Scotland’s record of accomplishment in tackling issues such as stalking and coercive control has been identified as an exemplar. Most recently, the Domestic Abuse Scotland Act (2018) was implemented which for the first time recognised a coercively controlling course of conduct as the crime of Domestic Abuse, possibly indicating a more empathetic and understanding criminal justice system. However, it is important to recognise that despite victim-centred policies and legislation, institutional criminal justice processes can diminish their impact. As such, victims can feel disempowered and controlled simultaneously by the bureaucracy in which they find themselves and by the continued abuse of the perpetrator. Therefore, this research explored whether the Scottish Criminal Justice System facilitates the empowerment of the victims who access its support or exacerbate their disempowerment.

The aim of this study was to explore the lived experiences of victims of coercive control and/or stalking as they navigated the criminal justice system.

Glasgow: SCCJR - The Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research, 2023. 72p.

By Niombo Lomba, Cecilia Navarra and Meenakshi Fernandes

With the rise of new technology and social media, gender-based cyber violence is a constantly growing threat with impacts at individual, social and economic levels, on women and girls and on society generally. There is currently no common definition or effective policy approach to combating gender-based cyber violence at EU or national level. Action taken so far has been inadequate, and the cross-border nature of gender-based cyber violence has yet to be properly addressed either. This European added value assessment (EAVA) supports the European Parliament in its right to request legislative action by the Commission, and complements its own-initiative legislative report 'Combating gender-based violence: Cyber violence' (2020/2035(INL)). Examining the definition and prevalence of gender-based cyber violence, the legal situation and individual, social and economic impacts, the EAVA draws conclusions on the EU action that could be taken, and identifies eight policy options. The costs to individuals and society are substantial and shown to be in the order of €49.0 to €89.3billion. The assessment also finds that a combination of legal and non-legal policy options would generate the greatest European added value, promote the fundamental rights of victims, address individual, social and economic impacts, and support law enforcement and people working with victims. The potential European added value of the policy options considered is a reduction in the cost of gender-based cyber violence ranging from 1 to 24%

Brussels, European Union, EPRS | European Parliamentary Research Service, 2021. 242p.

By Danielle Keats Citron

For too long, cyber abuse has been misunderstood and ignored. The prevailing view is that cyber abuse is not “really real,” though in rare cases authorities take it seriously. Justices of the U.S. The Supreme Court, for instance, demanded and received extra protection for themselves after facing online threats, but, in oral argument, dismissed a woman as “overly sensitive” for reporting hundreds of threatening texts to law enforcement. In other words, protection for me (the powerful) but not for thee. For everyday women and minorities, cyber abuse is unseen and unredressed, due to invidious stereotypes and gender norms. Empirical proof now exists that makes non-recognition difficult to justify. Studies show that cyber abuse is widespread, the injuries profound, and disproportionately borne by women, who often have intersecting disadvantaged identities. (Hence, the moniker cyber gender abuse). After years of advocacy and scholarship, it pains me to acknowledge the continued invisibility of cyber gender abuse, but progress is possible if we recognize our failings and commit to structural reform. Internet exceptionalism must end for the businesses best situated to prevent destructive cyber gender abuse. Congress should condition the immunity afforded content platforms on a duty of care to address cyber gender abuse and eliminate the legal shield for platforms whose business is abuse. Companies must commit to safety by design as a core principle.

Yale Law Journal Forum, Forthcoming. Virginia Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper No. 2023-57

By UN Women

The current survey arises as a joint initiative of the Observatory for Women's Equity (OEM) and the International Center for Private Enterprise (CIPE). The objective of this research is to characterize gender-based violence online, with a particular emphasis on businesswomen and/or female workers from companies registered in the chambers of commerce of Bogotá, Medellín, and Cali. The goal is to gain a deeper understanding of the nature and manifestations of gender-based violence in the digital environment, in order to propose policies that promote safe and equitable environments for all women in the business and labor sphere. The OEM is an initiative that emerged from the alliance between the WWB Colombia Foundation and the Universidad Icesi, with a mission to build, consolidate, and make visible projects that contribute to women's equity and inclusion. As a body for measurement, dissemination, institutional advocacy, and public policy, the Observatory focuses on analyzing factors that affect women's autonomy and equity in the Valle del Cauca region. Through systematic and timely measurement and analysis, it seeks to generate high-quality, accurate, and reliable information that contributes to regional and national debates on women's living conditions across various dimensions, promoting interventions in public policy and institutional programs that foster gender equity.

On the other hand, CIPE is one of the four core institutes of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). Since 1983, CIPE has worked with business leaders, politicians, and journalists to build civic institutions that are vital for a democratic society. CIPE addresses fundamental issues for democracy and economic development, including women's participation in the business and labor sphere. Its commitment to promoting gender equity, framed within the work carried out by its Center for Women's Economic Empowerment (CWEE), makes it a strategic ally to conduct this survey on gender-based violence in the digital environment, with the purpose of shedding light on and combating the violence that affects women in the business and labor context. Both organizations, aware of the importance of addressing gender issues comprehensively and cross-cutting, have joined forces to carry out this survey to achieve a greater understanding of gender-based violence online. The alliance seeks to generate accurate and reliable data that reflect the experiences and perceptions of businesswomen and female workers in the digital environment, in order to propose strategies and policies that promote equal opportunities and the eradication of gender violence. The collaboration between OEM and CIPE represents a joint effort to promote workplaces and business environments free from violence and discrimination, where women can fully thrive, exercise their rights, and contribute to the economic and social development of their communities.

New York: UN Women, 2023. 48p.

Aaron Chalfin, Benjamin Hansen and Rachel Ryley

For nearly every crime there is a victim. However, the vast majority of studies in the economics of crime have focused the causal determinants of criminality. We present novel evidence on the causal determinants of victimization, focusing on legal access to alcohol. The social costs of alcohol use and abuse are sizable and well-documented. We find criminal victimization — for both violent and property crimes — increases noticeably at age 21. Effects are not present at other birthdays and do not appear to be driven by a “birthday celebration effect.” The effects are particularly large for sexual assaults, especially those that occur in non-residential locations. Our results suggest prior research which has focused on criminality has understated the true social costs associated with increased access to alcohol.

Journal of Human Resources. Vol. 58, Issue 6. 1 Nov 2023