Introduction: In Brazil, violence, regardless of the type, is the leading cause of death in adolescents and young adults.Objective: To describe the characteristics of the homicides in which female children and adolescents were the victims based on the autopsy reports recorded in the morgue of the city of Porto Alegre, Brazil.Materials and methods: Cross-sectional study in which 70 autopsy reports of girls and female adolescents who were killed between January 2010 and December 2016 were analyzed. The cases were evaluated according to the homicide motive or the homicide perpetrator, and five categories were established: drug trafficking related death, femicide, homicide perpetrated by a family member, death preceded by sexual violence, and death related to other transgressions.Results: There was a significant increase in the number of girls and female adolescents who were murdered between 2010 (n=7) and 2016 (n=19). Most of the homicides (64.2%) were related to drug, while femicide occurred in 15.7% of the cases. Homicides perpetrated by a family member, or preceded by sexual violence or related with other transgressions were less frequent as they occurred in 10%, 5.7% and 4.2% of the cases, respectively.Conclusion: Greater attention must be paid to the increase in the number of drug trafficking related homicides among female adolescents when creating and implementing relevant public policies.

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A violência contra a mulher é considerada um problema de saúde pública que afeta pessoas de todas as idades e de todos os estratos socioeconômicos e culturais. A agressão realizada por um parceiro íntimo pode envolver violência física, psicológica, sexual, patrimonial e moral, sendo mais frequentemente parte de um padrão repetitivo. Normalmente, antecedendo o feminicídio, costumam ocorrer várias ameaças, chantagens, agressões e denúncias policiais. Esse delito constitui uma das principais causas de mortes prematuras femininas, ocorrendo como um fenômeno universal com especificações próprias de cada país. Vários fatores de risco podem estar associados ao feminicídio, tais como: mulheres imigrantes ou de minoria étnica, com parceiro ou ex-parceiro desempregado, ausência de união legal, presença de filhos de uniões anteriores, ruptura da relação por parte da mulher, violência prévia na relação ou durante a gestação, ciúmes, diferença de idade entre os parceiros e o consumo de álcool/drogas pelo agressor, vítima ou ambos. Nos últimos anos, observam-se avanços na legislação penal brasileira no que diz respeito ao combate à violência contra a mulher no âmbito familiar, sendo o feminicídio legislado na recente Lei nº 13.104, de 9 de março de 2015. A mudança na legislação é um avanço positivo e, juntamente com medidas protetivas nas áreas de saúde e segurança públicas, poderá proporcionar às futuras gerações uma sociedade em que as diferenças de gênero sejam respeitadas. Cabe aos psiquiatras o papel de atuar na detecção desse fenômeno, sugerindo ações de políticas públicas que englobem a avaliação e a assistência aos envolvidos.

Female homicide is a global phenomenon with a higher prevalence in countries in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Life expectancy in Brazil is compromised by the high risk of death from male and female homicides, a growing social problem. This study aimed to integrate different public datasets and describe the sociodemographic, criminal, and medicolegal characteristics of the homicides of girls and women occurring in Porto Alegre, southern Brazil, from 2010 to 2016. The data were obtained from autopsy reports, police reports, and records from crime scenes. During this period, there was a significant increase in overall standardized rates of female homicides (4.98 to 10.85), with a pronounced increase in non-gender-related deaths, especially due to urban violence, such as involvement in drug trafficking and other crimes and robbery resulting in death. Young (15–29 years of age), non-White women were the most affected. Increased female homicide rates due to non-gender-related factors is a new and worrying phenomenon in Brazil. Obtaining specific data on the profile of victims and characteristics of violence is a crucial step in facing the problem and directing public policies.