Justice Dept. says 68 percent of victims continue to suffer long after violent crime is committed

After a violent crime, it may take a long time for victims to recover, said a new Justice Department report released Tuesday.

Between 2009 and 2012, 68 percent of victims of violent crimes suffered sociological and economic problems long after the crime, including severe emotional distress, increased relationship problems and disruptions at school or work, said a report by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.

The effect is worse if the perpetrator was someone close to the victim. People were five times as likely to have emotional distress if the criminal was an intimate partner than if they were a stranger, said the report, which was based on data from the National Crime Victimization Survey.

And the type of crime mattered too, with three-fourths of victims suffering ill effects if the crime involved physical violence, weapons or sexual assault.

Victims often had to deal with problems for a month or more, the report said, including feelings of anxiety, depression and anger or trouble sleeping.

Although victims who are experiencing socioeconomic problems are more likely to report their problems to the police, 46 percent still aren’t reporting the crimes, data showed.

Older victims of crimes were more likely to suffer emotional or physical problems than younger people. And although race wasn’t found to be a major factor, women were 2½ times more likely than men to have to deal with problems, researchers found.