A woman who strangled her rapist to death with a T-shirt has been handed a prison sentence for trying to defend herself – sparking protests in Mexico.
Roxana Ruiz was sentenced to six years and two months in prison for “excessive use of self-defence” after she strangled the man who broke into her home, threatened and raped her.
The State of Mexico court said that while they recognise she was a victim of rape, they believed “a blow on the head” would have been enough to defend the 23-year-old.
In May 2021, the mother-of-one was arrested by police after she was spotted trying to drag a bag containing the chopped-up body parts of her attacker.
She ended up in the terrifying situation after she saw the man stranded on the street and offered him a place to stay.
“I feel sad, disappointed in justice. If I had not defended myself, I would be dead,” Ruiz told the media outside the court in the municipality of Nezahualcóyotl — one of the most dangerous to be a woman in Mexico.
Nezahualcoyotl is the second municipality in the state of Mexico with the highest number of femicides, intentional homicides of women and the third in disappearances, according to the National Citizen Observatory of Feminicide and RNPED [National Registry of Data on Missing Persons].
Roxana told El País Newspaper that she lives in fear for herself and her five-year-old son’s future.
“I feel tight in my chest because I don’t want to go back to jail,” she said last year.
Nos Queremos Vivas (We Want to Stay Alive), a Mexican organisation that campaigns against male violence, condemned the verdict.
The NGO said: “No woman should be jailed for defending lives that the state does not protect
Source: Mirror
In other news-North Carolina upholds 12-week abortion ban
North Carolina lawmakers have voted to override the governor’s veto of a ban on most abortions after 12 weeks.
The measure was passed by the state’s Republican-controlled legislature in early May, but was vetoed by Democratic Governor Roy Cooper over the weekend.
Republicans overturned the veto in back-to-back votes, prompting chants of “shame” from onlookers.
The law, which cuts the window for abortion in the state down from 20 weeks, will now take effect on 1 July. Learn more
