News

Research article: Intimate Partner Femicide

While intimate partner homicides are often portrayed as a crime of passion, this article argues that in many cases it is part of a longer process of control and domestic abuse. Rather than a spontaneous response to a situational trigger, these homicides are the tragic end to an already dire process. The author proposes that this process and its different stages can be mapped, which helps identify opportunities at each stage to prevent further and fatal escalation.

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Austria: Aktive Community for Dementia

Based on the initiative “Einsatz Demenz” (Operation Dementia), in which police officers were made aware of how to properly deal with people with dementia and their relatives, an online training course has now been developed for employees of public services. The focus of the course lies on being confident in dealing with people with dementia and was developed in close cooperation with the Danube University Krems.

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Estonia: Female victims of homicide get mostly killed by their intimate partners

Each year Estonian Ministry of Justice publishes criminal statistics overview and recently new data about homicide, domestic homicide and intimate partner homicide was added.

In 2020, the long-lasting downward trend in homicide began to raise. 50 homicide (including attempted) were recorded, 16 more than a year earlier; 40 people died in these crimes. Over the years, the majority of killings and murders have been related to a quarrel between acquaintances in the course of alcohol consumption. In 2020, more than four-fifths of perpetrators were intoxicated. 28% of crimes were directed against a family member (domestic homicides): the killing and murder (incl attempted) of 14 family members was recorded, which was twice as many as in 2019. In 2015-2020, 63% of domestic homicides were committed by a current or former partner.

The rate of female victims is much higher in intimate partner homicide: if almost one fourth (24%) of all homicide victims were women, then in domestic violence the rate was a little bit more than half (53%) and in intimate partner homicide almost 2/3 (67%).

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Finland: Action Plan for Combating Violence against Women

The Finnish Ministry of Justice appointed an intersectoral working group to prepare an Action Plan 2020 - 2023 for Combating Violence against Women. The cross-cutting theme is the prevention of violence, the Action Plan covers honour-related violence and digital violence. In addition, emphasis is placed on the work to be carried out with perpetrators of violence and on the competence development of authorities responsible for criminal investigation, criminal procedure and criminal sanctions.

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Poland: New regulations regarding domestic violence

On the basis of the introduced provisions, the Police received a new right in the form of the possibility of issuing an order to immediately leave the jointly occupied apartment and its immediate surroundings against a person using domestic violence, or a ban on approaching the apartment and its immediate surroundings. The order or the ban is valid for a period of 14 days, with the possibility of extending its duration by the court. The regulations entered into force on 30 November 2020.

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Portugal: Four instruments to prevent and combat domestic violence

The objective of this initiative is to offer professionals the skills and mechanisms necessary to improve their performance, and the protection and support of victims of domestic violence. The project stems from the Resolution of the Council of Ministers no. 139/2019 which established several measures for the prevention and combat of domestic violence. This included setting up a multisectoral working group that developed and implemented four instruments aimed at standardizing and coordinating procedures among professionals.

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Spain: Spanish National Police Units for Women and Family Affairs

The personnel of these units receive specialised training in gender-based violence (aspects of police operations and psychosocial characteristics). Police protection for victims of gender-based violence is carried out in a comprehensive and personalised way (each victim is assigned a protective police officer from their first contact with the national police). The initiative meets the objectives of the National Police Strategic Plan for 2021-2024.

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