In quarantine with an abuser: surge in domestic violence reports linked to coronavirus – The Guardian

One caller to a domestic violence hotline reported that her husband threatened to throw her out into the street if she coughed. Another reported they had been strangled by their partner, but feared going to the hospital because of the threat of coronavirus. An immunocompromised man from Pennsylvania called in after his emotionally abusive girlfriend began hiding cleaning supplies and hand sanitizer from him.

With more than three-quarters of the US population told to stay home to stem the pandemic’s spread, nowhere is safe for victims of intimate partner violence. A self-quarantine puts them in perpetual proximity to their abuser. Leaving exposes them not just to a deadly virus but a world that has largely closed its doors.