Law comes in play providing stronger punishment for domestic violence

A law drafted by the Georgian Interior Ministry has come into play which makes punishment stronger for family violence.

The law reads that for the violation of the restraint orders an individual will face criminal charges.

“There will be no warnings. If the restraint order is violated, the individual will face a criminal charge,” the ministry says.

The previous record on the family violence will be regarded as an aggravating circumstance.

Family violence will become punishable for two years in prison instead of the current one year.

Sanctions will become stronger if the violence is committed to the presence of a minor.

If a murder, damage to the health or bringing someone to suicide is motivated by gender, the sentence will be higher, the ministry reported.

Figures released earlier by the country’s Interior Ministry saw about 2,000 people involved in domestic violence cases from 2007 to 2014.

The Deputy Interior Minister of Georgia Natia Mezvrishvili stated in the summer that between January 1 and July 1 of 2018:

The Interior Ministry launched an investigation for 2,804 facts of family crimes and criminal prosecution was enacted against 1,933 individuals, which equals the whole data of the previous year.

1,328 individuals have been detained over the past six months for family violence.

3,292 restrictive orders have been issued in the period, which is a doubled figure of the previous year data.

The cases of violation of restrictive orders are low, amounting to 7 percent of the whole figure and mostly concern the cases when violators come closer to victims.