Analyzing two decades of intimate partner femicide-suicides in Türkiye

• Published in: Journal of forensic and legal medicine 2023-02, Vol.94, p.102485-102485, Article 102485
• Main Authors: Cavlak, Mehmet, Ar Mutlu, Nilüfer Dilara, Balseven Odabaşı, Aysun, Paksoy Erbaydar, Nüket
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Femicide; Firearm ownership; Firearms; Homicide; Homicide-suicide; Humans; Intimate partner femicide-suicide; Risk Factors; Sexual Partners; Suicide; Turkey; Violence against women
• ISSN: 1752-928X; 1878-7487
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jflm.2023.102485

Intimate partner femicide-suicide (IPF–S) is an understudied subgroup of homicide–suicide deaths. Limited research has been conducted on IPF-Ss in the Eastern Mediterranean region. This study thus aimed to evaluate the characteristics of IPF-Ss that occurred in Türkiye between 2000 and 2019. IPF-Ss (n = 226) were extracted from electronic news stories. Data on victims, perpetrators, their relationships, and incidents of murder and suicide were collected. Descriptive statistics were calculated, and logistic regression analysis, mortality rates, and proportion of IPF-S in femicide calculations were conducted, showing that 13.3% of the femicides (n = 1699) were IPF-Ss. The IPF-Ss increased in 5-year intervals and were the highest during the 2015–2019 period (62.5%). Victims were married in 48.2% of the cases and 56% were aged 40 years. In 42.0% of the cases, the perpetrator lived with the victim. Most (79.2%) of the cases took place in urban settlements, and the perpetrators used firearms in 84.1% of femicide cases. Firearm use was the most common method in cases where IPF-S was planned (OR = 2.98), when the IPF-S method was the same (OR = 29.6), and when the perpetrator committed suicide (OR = 7.82). In addition, it was found that firearm ownership is an important risk factor for IPF-S in Türkiye. Therefore, we recommend legislation to restrict firearms, as well as new measures to prevent illegal access to weapons. •Characteristics of intimate partner femicide-suicides were extracted from electronic news stories.•-PF-Ss accounted for 13.3% of the femicides.•Firearms were the most frequent weapons used in IPF-S cases.•Nearly two-thirds of the IPF-S cases were planned, and one-fifths of the suicide attempts occurred just after the femicide.