Domestic violence and its consequences

May 31, 2021

Judicial and investigative practice indicates that the vast majority of domestic conflicts are caused by personal animosity between family members due to alcohol abuse.

Judicial and investigative practice indicates that the vast majority of domestic conflicts are caused by personal animosity between family members due to alcohol abuse. It is not uncommon for a domestic brawler to resort to physical force against an opponent as the final argument to prove their point. In such situations, the consequences of such a "dispute" are always unpredictable.

Last year, as well as in the current period of this year, no facts of commission of grave or particularly grave crimes against life and health of citizens by guilty persons, committed on the grounds of domestic relations, i.e., murders and intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm, have been registered in our district.

However, this is not a reason for complacency, as the practice of bringing citizens to administrative responsibility for domestic scandals indicates negative trends in the domestic sphere, usually caused by alcohol abuse. In order to prevent such grave and particularly grave crimes, the legislator has provided for a number of preventive measures, up to and including bringing persons prone to domestic violence to administrative and criminal liability.

In particular, Part 2 of Article 10.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Republic of Belarus provides for liability in the form of a fine, public works, or administrative arrest for battery that did not cause bodily harm, intentional infliction of pain, physical or mental suffering, committed against a close relative or family member.

In case of systematic (at least three times) commission of such acts against the guilty person, criminal liability may arise under Article 154 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus (torture), which provides for punishment up to imprisonment for up to three years.

It is not uncommon for a family member, in the heat of an argument, to verbally threaten harm to the victim's health, life, or property in order to intimidate them. Furthermore, they may demonstrate the instrument of the intended crime or engage in other actions aimed at instilling fear and a sense of danger in the victim. Such actions are classified under Article 186 of the Criminal Code as threats of murder, grievous bodily harm, or property destruction. The punishment under this article of the Criminal Code also provides for imprisonment for up to two years.

Subsequently, during the court review of criminal cases involving such offenses, the accused typically claim that they had no intention of carrying out their threats and merely wished to frighten the victim, not realizing that criminal liability could ensue. However, such justifications cannot serve as grounds for releasing the guilty parties from criminal responsibility.

Many citizens who have suffered from domestic violence, for various reasons, do not wish to publicize the unlawful behavior of their relatives and family members. Even if such incidents become known to the public and law enforcement agencies, they refuse to file an official statement to bring the perpetrator to justice, naively assuming that it will not happen again.

Such behavior by victims fosters a sense of impunity and permissiveness in the domestic abuser, which can subsequently lead to more severe consequences.

In this regard, the legislator has granted the prosecutor the right, in the absence of such a statement in certain cases, to initiate administrative or criminal proceedings against the perpetrator of domestic violence himself, and such cases are no longer subject to termination by reconciliation of the parties.

It should be noted that in the current year, the district prosecutor has initiated 6 criminal cases for torture, threats of murder, or causing minor bodily harm, and 10 individuals have been brought to administrative responsibility for domestic conflicts involving physical violence.

For example, in March 2021, the district court sentenced a 39-year-old resident of the village of Derkovshchina to one year of imprisonment with a one-year suspended sentence for systematically beating his cohabitant.

Furthermore, by court order, he is obligated to perform 100 hours of community service in his free time outside of his primary employment.

In May of the current year, a 34-year-old resident of Gluboksky District, identified as Sh., was sentenced to 180 hours of community service for threatening to kill his wife.

A criminal case was initiated by the district prosecutor because the victim refused to file a report with the police due to her financial dependence on the accused.

In this regard, we would like to once again draw the attention of all those who have suffered or are suffering from domestic violence, that concealing these facts out of a false sense of compassion, pity, and in some cases, fear of retaliation, can play a negative role and lead to the perpetrator committing a more serious crime.

 

District Prosecutor I. Volynets