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June 9, 2026 — 5:00am
The public perception that a domestic violence killer in NSW is a random assailant on the fringes of society is put to rest by new data going back 26 years that shows he sits well within mainstream society.
He is an Australian-born man in his early 30s armed with a knife.
This average profile of a DV killer has emerged from a new interactive website created by the state’s Domestic Violence Death Review Team, which aims to provide a concise snapshot of every DV death in NSW, including perpetrator and victim profiles and details on how and where the deaths occurred.
It reveals that despite growing awareness and government attempts to address the issue, the killing of women in intimate partner violence continues apparently unabated.
The data shows one-third of all homicide deaths in the 26 years to March this year were DV related. Almost 300 women were killed by their current or former intimate partner following a history of DV.
Disturbingly, the figures also show DV homicides in 2024-25 matched a decade-high peak of 36 in 2014-15.
Men comprise about 80 per cent of DV killers and most perpetrators are in the 30-34 age group. While international evidence focused on firearms, stabbings in NSW far outnumbered blunt-force assaults and shootings, followed by suffocation or strangulation.
NSW State Coroner Judge Teresa O’Sullivan said the new tool would provide crucial information to policymakers, frontline workers, researchers and advocates. She expressed concern about a recent increase in DV homicides and noted the data showed DV homicide was often perpetrated from within the cultural mainstream by all types of people.
“This is significant because it challenges the misconception that domestic violence is confined to particular groups or occurs only on the margins of society,” she said.
Domestic and family violence is the biggest issue dealt with by police and the Minns government has tried to address the crisis, strengthening the Bail Act to make it harder for alleged perpetrators to walk free. It has provided $100 million to meet the expected costs of keeping them in prison. It also announced an additional $227 million over five years to support victim-survivors in the justice system. There are new laws to deter stalking.
All of this is commendable, but there is increasing pressure to make DV a cornerstone of the state budget to be handed down by Treasurer Daniel Mookhey on June 23.
Victoria poured money into addressing domestic violence after holding a royal commission prompted by the 2014 killing of Rosie Batty’s son, Luke, by his father.
Two years ago, Premier Chris Minns ruled out a royal commission. He said then NSW lacked the time and money for a lengthy inquiry. A commission may not be the answer to everything, but it would certainly put DV under the spotlight and identify some meaningful changes to help prevent this scourge of violence.
Domestic violence support groups have called for better co-ordination of bodies from the justice system to the health sector. More specialist DV knowledge is also needed at police stations and courts.
The latest data shows that despite all the best efforts of government, an unacceptable situation is not improving. Every tragedy of a woman’s death started long before with bullying, physical and mental control and coercion – their pleas for help all too often are met with silence. Clearly, more needs to be done.
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