Trends and Disparities in Assault Injuries Among Women in California 2005-2022.

Abstract

Women account for more than half of nonfatal violent victimizations and one-fifth of homicides in the U.S., with variation by age and race and ethnicity. Although disparities in violence against women are well-documented, temporal trends within these subgroups are understudied. This study quantifies state-level rates of violence against women in California from 2005 to 2022 by age and race and ethnicity. Statewide inpatient and emergency department hospital discharge data, along with death records from California from 2005 to 2022, were analyzed in 2025. Assault injuries were identified using diagnostic codes and categorized by fatality and firearm involvement. Age-adjusted and age-specific rates were calculated per 100,000 person-years using census population denominators. Rates were examined annually and aggregated over the study period. Rate ratios were used to compare assault injury rates by race and ethnicity and over time. Over the study period, Black women aged 20-24 years had the highest assault injury rate (2,174.96 per 100,000 person-years; 95% CI=2,151.17, 2,198.75). Among women <65 years, rates were highest among Black women, whereas among those aged 65 years and older, rates were highest among multiracial women. Across all ages, assault injury rates among Black women were 3.82 times those of White women (95% CI=3.71, 3.93), followed by American Indian (RR=1.62, 95% CI=1.55, 1.70) and multiracial women (RR=1.48, 95% CI=1.41, 1.56). Black women experienced higher annual assault injury rates compared with other groups throughout the study period. Across all racial and ethnic groups, assault injury rates in 2022 exceeded those in 2005, after a decline in 2020. Assault injury rates among women in California remain high and exhibit persistent racial and ethnic disparities over time. The results suggest limited progress in violence prevention, with the largest impacts on marginalized racial and ethnic groups that are most heavily burdened by assault injuries.