Male Violence on Trial

bianet compiled all male violence related court verdicts that appeared on the media between  all court verdicts March 1, 2013 and January 30, 2014. According to the report, at least 31 female murder, 46 rape and 11 assault cases have been concluded with a verdict. It also cited 6 cases where female victims retaliated their perpetrators by murdering either their violent husbands or rapists. 

Murder

At least 31 female murder cases have been concluded with a verdict between March 1, 2013 and January 30, 2014. 

bianet also observed that sentence reductions in male violence cases have been highlighted by the media outlets. According to this, Out of 31 murder suspects, 45 percent of them (14) benefitted from sentence reductions due to good conduct or provocation to crime. 

Some of the arguments of suspects that led to sentence reductions were as follows: “Honor crimes are different”, expression of regret, arriving to the courtroom in a suit, expression of doubt about the crime, victim’s woman chat messages, victim’s saying to the suspect: “Are you a man? Who do you think you are?”. 

Only 29 percent of murder cases including systematic torture received “non-parole life sentences” (9 people). One of these convicts have previously been arrested for two months for assaulting his wife with a knife and continued his threats once he was released. Two of those victims had been within women protection programs. 

Only 35 percent of murderers received life sentence (11 people). One of these convicts have seriously injured his wife and benefitted from a release due to “bipolar anxiety disorder”. 

The remaining 11 murder case suspects received prison sentences ranging from 2 to 27 years.

Convicts listed mostly as closest men 

It turned out that most murder convicts have been the husbands (51.6 percent) of slain women. They were followed by men whose proposals were turned down (6.4 percent) and then ex-husbands, lovers. 

Prosecution takes 1 to 33 months

The period between the incident and murder case verdicts ranged between 1 to 33 months.  

The distribution of prosecution periods were listed as follows: 6 - 9 months (36 percent), 10 - 14 months (23 percent), 1 - 3 months (13 percent), 18 - 20 months (13 percent) and 28 - 33 months (13 percent). 

13 percent of cases (4) have been concluded in the court of appeals, ranging from a period of 9 to 18 months. 

While the court of appeals took the following decisions: approval of sentence (1), overthrowing long term for sentence reduction and overthrowing of sentence reduction. 

Retaliation to male violence 

Turkish courts reached verdicts in 6 case where women faced trial for charges related to murdering their violent spouses or rapists. 

While some of the cases were considered as self-defense, other cases just benefitted from sentence reductions. 

The distribution of verdicts were as follows: acquittal due to self-defense in murder of violent husband (2), sentence reduction due to killing in response to battery or rape (2). 

On the other hand, one woman who killed her policeman rapist received 15 years of prison. 

Another boy who murdered his violent and abusive father received 11 years and 8 months of prison after benefitting from sentence reductions due to his age. 

Lastly, a court convicted to 20 years of prison another man who murdered his cousin-in-law for being his cousin.  

Rape

At least 46 rape cases have been concluded with a verdict between March 1, 2013 and January 30, 2014. 

While 18 percent of rape victims were under 18 years old (13 people), 10.8 percent were mentally-disabled (5 people) and 10.8 were aliens (5 people). 

Suspects were acquitted in 8.6 percent of cases (4): In one case, a rape victim woman from Syria reportedly withdrew her complaint. On the other hand, 5 men who allegedly presented themselves as policemen and raped a woman acquitted as well. One of those victims were a minor alien. 

In another case where the prosecutor decided not to follow charges, the suspect was a policeman and the incident allegedly took place in a police station. 

In the has case where a tourist woman complaint of rape in Alanya, the court of appeals ordered the Norwegian mental healthcare authorities to send a report on the psychological well-being of the plaintiff woman. 

The distribution of prison sentence terms were ranged between 2 to 95 years in the remaining 87 percent of cases where rape suspects have been convicted. months.  

Out of 45 defendants, 26.6 percent (12 people) have been convicted to prison terms ranging from 10 to 15 years. 

Out of 45 defendants, 46.6 percent (21 people) have been convicted to prison terms above 15 years - which have been affected by various factors including carrying an unlicensed weapon, abuse of duties and rape in an official building. 

Battery-Assault 

At least 11 assault cases have been concluded with a verdict between March 1, 2013 and January 30, 2014. 

Out of all cases, 63.6 percent were related to battery (7 cases). Even though violent were convicted to prison terms ranging from 2 to 6 months, these penalties were commuted to monetary fines or suspended.  

For instance, while a violent lover received a fine equivalent to 125 judicial work days, other judges in Eskişehir and Bartın ordered convicts to plant trees or play guitar in pension houses.  

Among other notable cases; one man was ordered to serve 3 years in prison for gravely wounding his wife with a knife, another man received 33 years of prison sentence for cutting the throat and attempting to rape his victim. In other cases, one man received 12 years and 9 months for splashing acid to his ex-wife’s face and another man was ordered to serve 15 years and 8 months of prison for assaulting his wife with a rifle. (ÇT/BM)