Homicide is a leading cause of death during pregnancy and the year after, yet it is rarely reviewed as a maternal death. This project examines how maternal homicides are counted and reviewed, and what that means for prevention.
At a glance
Question
How are maternal homicides counted and reviewed, and how could better review prevent them?
Partners
Funder
This project was not externally funded.
Timeline
2020-2025
Why it matters
Maternal Mortality Review Committees decide which deaths count as pregnancy related, and those decisions shape national statistics, research funding, and standards of care. Many committees review only deaths with a medical cause on the death certificate, so homicides are left out, even though pregnant and postpartum women are about five times as likely to be killed as non-pregnant women of reproductive age. Deaths that aren’t reviewed can’t inform prevention.
What we’re doing
We argued in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology that every Maternal Mortality Review Committee should review homicides with the same rigor as medical causes, using police and investigator reports, informant interviews, and members such as domestic violence professionals and law enforcement. We are comparing what state committees record, and analyzing maternal homicide rates by state using the National Violent Death Reporting System.
What we learned
Most maternal mortality surveillance counts only obstetric and medical causes
Many committees review only deaths with a medical cause on the death certificate
Intimate partner violence is present in more than half of maternal homicides
Screening for intimate partner violence during prenatal care is recommended but not routine.
Papers from this project
BMC Public Health, 2025
Maternal Homicide Rates Among 15 U.S. States
From 2018 to 2022, there were 5.33 maternal homicides per 100,000 live births; 78% involved firearms and 51% were linked to intimate partner violence. Only 15 states had enough data to calculate reliable state rates.
Journal of Public Health Policy, 2025
The Dobbs Decision, Maternal Homicide, and Family Violence
Why restricted abortion access may increase family violence, and what clinicians, first responders, researchers, and policymakers can do.
American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 2024
Maternal Mortality Review Committees Should Take a Closer Look at Homicide Deaths
Every review committee should examine homicides with the same rigor as medical causes of maternal death.
This project was not externally funded.
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