Court rejected plea for protection against violent family member
The Higher Court in Ljubljana refused to extend a measure that would have separated an abuser from his wife and two daughters. The judges ruled that despite difficulties in their relationships, the woman and girls were not in a subordinate position.
Court rejected plea for protection against violent family member
The Higher Court in Ljubljana recently upheld a decision by first-instance judges who did not extend a separation order for a man accused of psychological abuse against his wife and two adult daughters. This means he can remain in the shared home, even though family members have warned of increasingly serious behaviour, according to Dnevnik.
The man had previously been issued a separation order, but it ceased to be valid after a certain period. When the women requested an extension under domestic violence protection regulations, the judges denied them protection. In their plea, they cited increasingly intense psychological abuse – the man allegedly smashed objects around the house, insulted and humiliated family members, shouted and mistreated the family pet. According to their accounts, the attacks were linked to alcohol consumption.
In the past, he was allegedly aggressive towards other people as well, and at home he allegedly terrorised the family with threats. Online, he allegedly shared an article about domestic violence, which the women understood as a direct warning. During time spent together at home, he allegedly smashed dishes and accused his wife of things that made her afraid to sleep in the shared living space.
The judges at the first instance explained that separation orders are not intended to resolve every family dispute, but only situations where the victim is acutely endangered due to abuse of power among household members. In this case, they ruled that there were long-standing conflictual relationships, but the woman and girls were not in a subordinate position, were not afraid of it, and had themselves participated in the disputes.
A study by the Institute of Criminology showed that approximately one in five abusers issued a separation order does not comply with it. Last year, police in the country issued 1,088 such orders under police task regulations, which are valid for two days. According to police data, 359 further orders were issued last year under the law on preventing domestic violence and criminal procedure.
Two years ago, the higher court in the capital handled cases of a man who violated the separation order 63 times in just over a month, primarily through unwanted messages. For this, he received a fine of 10,000 euros. In May this year, an attack with a sharp object was reported in Šiška, where a 52-year-old man with a separation order attacked his sister-in-law.
Source: Google News SI — Crime (sl)