Female homicide victims in the Metropolitan Area of Guadalajara, Mexico: magnitude, characteristics and spatial distribution

Abstract

Introduction: In a general context of violence against women, an exponential trend in homicides in this population sector in Mexico has been maintained for 15 years. Methods: This study was carried out to identify the magnitude and characteristics of female homicide victims, causal agent, day, time and place where the aggression occurred, not death; as well as compare, by neighborhood and municipality, the spatial distribution of 141 homicides in the Metropolitan Area of Guadalajara (MAG) during 2013 and 2018. Results: Based on these years, it was identified that the mortality rate increased from 2.29 (2013) to 3.48 (2018) homicides per 100 thousand women in the MAG; this was higher in Tlajomulco de Zúñiga (2013) and San Pedro Tlaquepaque (2018) municipalities. For both analyzed years, two neighborhoods were identified, located south of the MAG, where,on average, more homicide victims occurred, mainly on weekends, between 4 pm and 2 pm, and with firearms. In addition, the house represented the place where most of the fatal aggressions against women were committed, whose age ranged from 30 to 44 years (35.2 % in 2013 and 43.1 % in 2018). Conclusion: Beyond the increase in the magnitude of female homicide victims, the strategies to eradicate violence, which generally precede the aggression, continue to not function properly; not even to prevent victims from being killed in the place that historically has been the most at risk, that is, living place.