ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - Domestic violence deaths were up more than 110% in Illinois last year, according to a new report.
Advocates for victims say a firearms were used in nearly 70% of those killings.
According to a new report from the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence, there were 94 incidents of domestic violence that led to 120 deaths in 2023. That includes 107 homicides and 13 suicides in which the perpetrators took their own lives.
That’s up from the previous year, when there were 45 incidents that led to 57 deaths.
Vickie Smith, former executive director and consultant for the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence, says the numbers are sharp rise from last year and they have not seen a dramatic increase like this.
"We've released this report for a number of years since the um since about 2010," said Smith. "the numbers go up and down a little bit but never this dramatically and this quickly.
The new report has led to groups pushing for new laws that would prompt seizure of weapons in domestic violence cases.
Smith is among those pushing for passage of Katrina's Bill, which would require police to remove guns from the home when someone files an order of protection.
"So that bill has been around for the last couple of years in the Illinois legislature and we're hoping that the impetus of this report along with the Supreme Court finding of the Rahimi case will push it towards passage this fall or in the spring," said Smith.
Smith says in a home where domestic violence occurs, the presence of a weapon in the home increases the chance of homicide by 500%.
"One of the things that we know about domestic violence is that when someone is a victim for lack of a better term, they will take different kinds of steps to move forward to be more safe, to keep their family more safe," said Smith. "When that happens, a person who's causing harm very likely escalates their behaviors in order to maintain control of that person."