DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IS any violent or threatening behavior between family members, including former husbands and wives. The term is now also applied to abusive acts between unmarried partners who live together. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence defines it as "a pattern of behavior with the effect of establishing power and control over another person through fear and intimidation."

Researchers estimate that domestic violence occurs every fourteen seconds in the United States. Studies show that over 2 million women are severely beaten in their homes each year and that half of all couples have had at least one violent incident. Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women in the United States. According to the U.S. attorney general's office, 94 percent of violence between partners involves a man beating a woman.

Domestic violence has a long history...