Tough economic times and the stress of the holiday season have spurred a flood of incidents of domestic violence in North Carolina, reports WRAL News.

In addition, 16 people have died and five people injured in seven incidents over the past month within and around the Raleigh-Durham area.

The first murder-suicide occurred in Greensboro. A woman allegedly shot and wounded her former lover and killed four others before taking her own life. While notes left at the scene confessed to and apologized for the shootings, investigators say the woman left no motive.

Since then, area authorities have investigated four other murder-suicide cases and two attempts.

There were 73 domestic homicides in North Carolina in 2010. More than one-third of those homicides were murder-suicides.

A Durham crisis center spokesman says it varies as to what pushes unstable individuals to commit domestic assault or domestic violence. Oftentimes, it does not have to be much, and the rate of domestic violence often increases this time of year. One suggested explanation for this pattern is that the holidays are a busy and stressful time of year.

Families are together a lot more so there are more opportunities for face-to-face confrontation. Combine that with a small bankroll, alcohol and a short temper and experts say celebrations can get dangerously out of control.

People who are facing accusations of domestic violence need to take steps to defend against the charges against them. The state of North Carolina takes accusations of domestic violence seriously. So seriously, in fact, that the state employs prosecutors who focus exclusively on domestic violence cases. Criminal charges of domestic violence carry the possibility of jail time, hefty fines and the possibility of a permanent criminal record.

Source: WRAL News, "Spate of murder-suicides spurs warnings about domestic violence," Beau Minnick, Dec. 15, 2011