Every 4 minutes: Family violence in New Zealand: December 12, 2018

Every four minutes, a call is made to the police or a notification is sent to child services, related to a case of family violence. It is also the name given to a newly released report. It is the third of a series of researches looking into the justice system, and written by Doctor Ian Lambie, the Chief Science Advisor to the Justice sector. 

About 150,000 calls for care or protection notices are made each year,  80 percent of child and young offenders have experienced family violence, while 87 percent of young offenders aged 14 to 16 years old had previous care and protection concerns.

A third of New Zealand women experience physical or sexual partner violence, rising to 55 per cent when psychological/emotional abuse is included.

And at least one in 10 New Zealand men have experienced childhood sexual abuse.

While pointing out the statistics, Dr Lambie insists his report reveals family violence is not so much an individual issue within a couple or a home, but more so a community.