In Russia, the average fine handed down in domestic violence cases was 5,323 rubles (about $69.25) in the first half of 2020, the rights group Zona Prava reports.
Human rights activists calculated this figure by studying statistics on domestic violence cases from the Judicial Department under the Russian Supreme Court. In particular, they looked at cases under article 116.1 of the Criminal Code (battery by a person subject to administrative punishment) and article 6.1.1 of the Administrative Code (battery).
Why these two articles?
In 2016, Russia’s Criminal Code article on battery without specified motives was downgraded to an administrative offense. Initially, first-time offenders were not held criminally liable for battery, so long as the victim wasn’t a close relative. Then, Russia’s State Duma proposed making battery targeting family members an administrative offense as well. In January 2017, the State Duma adopted a law that essentially decriminalized domestic violence, downgrading battery against family members to an administrative offense. Those charged with multiple convictions of beating family members are held criminally liable.
In the first six months of 2020, 754 people received criminal convictions under article 116.1. During that same period, Russian courts tried more than 79,000 cases under article 6.1.1 of the Administrative Code and took administrative action against 50,291 people; 41,120 of whom paid a total of more than 218 million rubles (about $2.84 million) in fines, according to Zona Prava’s statistics.
The average fine handed down in domestic violence cases in the first half of 2020 was calculated on the basis of this data.
According to Zona Prava’s estimates, the average fine during the same period last year was 5,381 rubles ($70.01).
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