Law fails women who kill partners in self-defence

Behind bars: Many women who have killed their violent partners end up with lengthy prison sentences.

Victims of domestic and intimate partner violence such as Reeva Steenkamp and Karabo Mokoena grab headlines and trigger protests, but the women who stay alive by killing their abusive partners in self-defence are forgotten and misunderstood. The Wits Justice Project spoke to three women who claim to have killed their violent partners in self-defence. Although they arguably might have been acquitted or received noncustodial sentences, they are serving longer sentences than Oscar Pistorius, who killed Steenkamp. The waiting room in … Read more