In November, the District Prosecutor’s Office in Lubin filed an indictment against a 35-year-old resident of Chocianów who, while drunk or under the influence of drugs, abused his wife, threatening her with scissors or a screwdriver held to her neck. The man has been in custody since August 29 of this year.

The couple had been married since 2001. Throughout that time, the man abused alcohol. He soon began taking drugs as well. They made him aggressive. He also suspected his wife of marital infidelity. In March 2012, when he was dismissed from work, the defendant’s behavior took the form of abuse.

He began starting arguments during which he insulted his wife, drove her out of the house, and threw various objects at her, such as a pot, toys, glasses or... a table. Moreover, he threatened to kill his wife, holding sharp objects—a screwdriver or scissors—to her head and neck. He pulled her hair, kicked her legs and pushed her into furniture. He struck her face with an open hand.

The victim responded to her husband’s behavior with passive resistance. Until August 28, 2014, when he threw a table, she did not notify the police. As a reserved person, the woman did not tell her family about her husband’s behavior. During arguments, she only called his sisters, in whose presence he would calm down. Above all, however, she tried to persuade her husband to undergo addiction treatment again.

The defendant received treatment for dependence on psychoactive substances in 2010 and 2013. On the latter occasion, he left the hospital against medical advice and later gave up treatment at another facility on his own. In August 2014, he was taken to a sobering-up center twice.

The 35-year-old, questioned as a suspect, admitted that he had insulted his wife, sold a television and a game console, and taken money from his children’s piggy bank to buy drugs. He denied the remaining allegations. He explained that he did not remember well what he did under the influence of alcohol and drugs and could not explain why, for example, he had thrown a table.

The man also expressed a willingness to undergo treatment for drug addiction. Abuse is punishable by up to 5 years in prison. The case will be heard by the court in Lubin.

District Prosecutor’s Office in Legnica/ii