The number of femicides increased by 20% between 2020 and 2021.
One hundred and twenty-two women lost their lives in 2021 under the blows of their spouse or ex-spouse, up 20% from the previous year, according to the report of “violent deaths within the couple” published on Friday by the Ministry of the Interior. According to this study, 143 violent deaths within the couple were recorded in 2021, 122 women and 21 men, thus marking an increase after the sharp drop observed in 2020 (125 deaths). “The 143 spousal homicides recorded in 2021 correspond more to the level of the number of violent deaths within the couple observed before the Covid-19 epidemic”, specifies the study by the Ministry of the Interior.
As in previous years, women are the main victims: 102 of them lost their lives in 2020, while 146 feminicides were recorded in 2019. “The typical profile of the perpetrator has not changed. It is mainly male, most often, in a couple, of French nationality, aged 30 to 49 or 70 and over, and not exercising or no longer exercising a professional activity, ”underlines the study.
Nearly one in three women (32%) had experienced previous violence and 64% of these had reported the violence to law enforcement. Of these, 84% had filed a complaint. In a third of the cases (33%), the presence of at least one substance likely to alter the discernment of the author and/or the victim (alcohol, narcotics, psychotropic drugs) is noted at the time of the events. On average, one death was recorded every two and a half days last year, compared to one every three days in 2020.