by Susanne Beechey and Jacqueline Payne

About the authors: Susanne Beechey and Jacqueline Payne are with the National Organization for Women Legal Defense and Education Fund. NOW Legal Defense pursues equality for women and girls in the workplace, the schools, the family, and the courts through litigation, education, and public information programs.

Each year, approximately 1.5 million women are physically or sexually assaulted by an intimate partner in the United States. It is estimated that nearly 800,000 women a year seek some type of medical care as a result of injuries sustained by a sexual or physical assault. Each year approximately 500,000 women are stalked by an intimate partner.

Domestic violence survivors face a pattern of psychological assault and physical and sexual coercion by their intimate partners. Abusers often retain control over survivors by ensuring a survivor’s...