Woman Stabs Ex-Boyfriend to Death for Allegedly Abusing Her—Police
Authorities in Florida are investigating after a woman reportedly killed her ex-boyfriend during an altercation early on Sunday morning.
Deputies from the Manatee County Sheriff's Office were called to the Star Mobile Home Park, located in the 200 block of 41st Avenue E. in Bradenton, in response to the incident at about 6 a.m., Fox 13 reported.
According to the station, deputies initially responded to a 911 call about a person who had been injured in a fall. However, on arrival, they learned that an incident had taken place between an unidentified 42-year-old woman and her ex-boyfriend, 24.
The man, who also hasn't been named, was found dead on the ground between two vehicles, the sheriff's office said. He had a wound to his chest.
The woman told investigators that her ex-boyfriend was abusing her. She said he had been hitting and choking her when she stabbed him once in the chest.
Based on preliminary evidence, investigators said they believe the woman was acting in self-defense. The investigation is ongoing.
Newsweek has contacted the Manatee County Sheriff's Office for additional comment.
According to the Denver-based National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), nearly 20 people are physically abused by an intimate partner in the U.S. every minute—which equates to more than 10 million men and women a year. The number of reported domestic violence incidents in the U.S. rose by 42 percent from 2016 through 2018, according to the nonprofit.
The NCADV explains that domestic violence "is the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another." It includes physical violence, sexual violence, threats, and emotional abuse.
Although women are more often the victims of domestic abuse, approximately one in 10 men also experience domestic abuse in their lifetime. Around one in five female victims needs medical care as a result, compared to one in 20 male victims.
According to research cited by the NCADV, half of female murder victims are killed by intimate partners, while one in 13 male murder victims is killed by intimate partners.
In Florida, 37.9 percent of woman and 29.3 percent of men experience some form of domestic violence, sexual violence or stalking from an intimate partner in their lifetime.
More than 105,000 domestic violence incidents were reported to police in the state in 2019, but many more went unreported, according to the NCADV. That year, 221 Floridians were killed in domestic violence incidents—42 percent of those killings were committed with firearms.
