Showing papers by "Daniel W. Webster published in 2009"

The Danger Assessment Validation of a Lethality Risk Assessment Instrument for Intimate Partner Femicide

Abstract: The Danger Assessment (DA) is an instrument designed to assess the likelihood of lethality or near lethality occurring in a case of intimate partner violence. This article describes the development, psychometric validation, and suggestions for use of the DA. An 11-city study of intimate partner femicide used multivariate analysis to test the predictive validity of the risk factors on the DA from intimate partner femicide cases (N = 310) compared with 324 abused women in the same cities (controls). The results were used to revise the DA (four items added; one "double-barreled" item divided into two), and the calculated weights (adjusted odds ratios) used to develop a scoring algorithm with levels of risk. These levels of risk were then tested with an independent sample of attempted femicides (N = 194) with a final outcome of .90 of the cases included in the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve.

Intimate partner violence: development of a brief risk assessment for the emergency department.

Abstract: OBJECTIVES: Women assaulted by intimate partners are frequently patients in emergency departments (EDs). Many victims and health care providers fail to take into account the potential risks of repeat partner violence. The objective of this study was to use data from a larger study of domestic violence risk assessment methods to develop a brief assessment for acute care settings to identify victims at highest risk for suffering severe injury or potentially lethal assault by an intimate partner or former partner. METHODS: Victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) were interviewed twice between 2002 and 2004. The baseline interview included the 20 items of Campbell's Danger Assessment (DA; predictor). The follow-up interview, conducted 9 months later on average, assessed abuse inflicted since the baseline interview (outcome). Multiple logistic regression was used to identify questions on the DA most predictive of severe abuse and potentially lethal assaults. Female IPV victims were recruited from New York City family courts, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department 9-1-1 calls, New York City and Los Angeles shelters, and New York City hospitals; 666 women responded to the DA at baseline, and 60% participated in follow-up interviews. RESULTS: Severe injuries or potentially lethal assaults were experienced by 14.9% of retained study participants between the baseline and follow-up interviews. The best brief prediction instrument has five questions. A positive answer to any three questions has a sensitivity of 83% (95% confidence interval = 70.6% to 91.4%). CONCLUSIONS: This instrument can help predict which victims may be at increased risk for severe injury or potentially lethal assault and can aid clinicians in differentiating which patients require comprehensive safety interventions. Language: en

Effects of State-Level Firearm Seller Accountability Policies on Firearm Trafficking

Abstract: Criminals illegally obtaining firearms represent a great risk to many urban residents. This cross-sectional study of 54 US cities uses data on state laws governing gun sales, a survey of law enforcement agencies’ practices to promote compliance with gun sales laws, and crime gun trace data to examine associations between these policies and practices with gun trafficking indicators. Higher levels of local gun ownership were linked with greater intrastate gun trafficking. Regression models estimate that comprehensive regulation and oversight of gun dealers and state regulation of private sales of handguns were each associated with significantly lower levels of intrastate gun trafficking. Discretionary permit-to-purchase licensing laws’ negative association with intrastate trafficking disappeared when local gun ownership is controlled. The effects of these relatively restrictive gun purchase laws on trafficking may be mediated by the laws’ lowering of gun ownership. Relatively low prevalence of gun ownership may also be a prerequisite for passage of discretionary purchase. We observed no effect on intrastate trafficking of laws limiting handgun sales to a maximum of one per person per month.

Keeping firearms from drug and alcohol abusers

Abstract: Firearms were used to commit 16 883 suicides and 12 791 homicides in the USA in 2006.1 One of the most common and possibly least controversial objectives of firearm policies in the USA is to keep firearms from people deemed to be at elevated risk of injuring others or themselves. Firearms laws in the USA commonly disqualify individuals if they are too young, have been convicted of a serious crime, are subject to certain domestic violence restraining orders, have been adjudicated to be “mentally defective,” or because they abuse illegal drugs or alcohol. Here we discuss the potential of well-crafted firearms prohibitions for persons who abuse alcohol or controlled substances to reduce violence and injuries. There is a large body of scientific evidence indicating that people who abuse alcohol or illicit drugs are at increased risk of committing acts of violence and self-harm. Drug and alcohol abuse has been strongly linked with the perpetration of fatal and non-fatal domestic violence,2 3 4 5 6 youth violence,7 8 incarceration for violent crimes,9 and suicide and suicide attempts.4 10 Although there is some debate about whether these associations are causal or are due to other underlying determinants, there is little doubt that drug and alcohol abusers represent a high-risk group. For example, in one case–control study of risk factors for homicides and suicides within the home, the prevalence of prior alcohol abuse and illicit drug use among homicide perpetrators was 17 and 4.6 times higher, respectively, than among controls. For suicide victims, the prevalence of alcohol abuse was nearly 7 times higher, and the prevalence of illicit drug use 6 times higher, than for controls.4 There has been a long and contentious debate about the risks and benefits associated with gun ownership among the general population. While we …

Violence Against Women and the U.S. Supreme Court: Recent Challenges and Opportunities for Advocates and Practitioners:

Abstract: The U.S. Supreme Court has frequently grappled with violence against women, with three major cases decided since 2000. Although the law can be a powerful tool to minimize the risk of violence against women, it can also be an obstacle to interventions. As legislators, prosecutors, and advocates implement legal interventions to respond to violence against women, the Supreme Court has increasingly been called on to interpret these laws and assess their constitutionality. This legal note examines recent Supreme Court jurisprudence that addresses interventions to prevent violence against women and explain how practitioners can tailor interventions to respond to these decisions.