# Homicide among Indigenous females in North Carolina: a comparison of publicly generated data and violent death reporting system

## TL;DR

The study compares data on murdered Indigenous women in North Carolina from official and community sources, finding significant discrepancies.

## Contribution

The paper highlights the importance of integrating community-generated data with official systems to better understand violence against Indigenous women.

## Key findings

- Only 33.3% of cases matched between the NC-VDRS and the MMIW NC database.
- Substantive differences were found between the two data systems.
- The study emphasizes the need for comprehensive data to support Indigenous communities.

## Abstract

Like other minoritized populations, American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) females experience disparate morbidity and mortality outcomes to that of the general US population. This study identified discrepancies in reporting of AI/AN female decedents between the North Carolina Violent Death Reporting System (NC-VDRS) and an online, user-generated database. Female AI/AN decedent data of all ages were collected from the NC-VDRS and compared against that of the publicly available North Carolina Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW NC) database for the study period, 2004–2019. Twenty-four of the 72 cases matched between data systems (33.3%). Substantive differences between the NC-VDRS and the MMIW NC database were found. Future efforts should be directed towards supporting Indigenous communities with the comprehensive data the NC-VDRS can provide. This paper highlights statewide public health systems like the NC-VDRS supporting community efforts to understand, advocate for, and disseminate information on MMIW.