The chapter first examines definition and measurement problems, and it presents the results of major studies on the incidence of domestic violence. The author explains the dynamics of battering relationships, with the caveat that there is no universal victim or offender. A review of criminal justice policy responses, including the mandatory arrest debate, batterer intervention programs, and coordinated community response networks suggests that although progress has been made, women's safety continues to be marginalized. The chapter examines relationships between women's poverty, welfare reform, and battering, concluding that efforts to enhance women's safety must be integrated with work to empower women. The author advises that battering is a major cause of women's poverty, and poverty helps trap women in abusive relationships. Domestic violence is not a phenomenon that can be eliminated without addressing the larger issues of women's subordination in a patriarchal society. Women's empowerment must include access to education, careers, child care, health care, and reproductive freedom. A Kentucky program that provided such services to battered women in addition to criminal justice intervention found that 82 percent of the women experienced no revictimization. 95 references and 5 discussion questions