Delimitări terminologice şi propuneri de lege ferenda privind posibila incriminare a femi(ni)cidului în legea penală română
Terminological Delimitations and De Lege Ferenda Proposals Regarding the Possible Criminalization of Femicide in Romanian Criminal Law

Summary/Abstract: The term femicide or feminicide refers to the killing of a woman, often in contexts of domestic or sexual violence. This phenomenon is widespread globally and represents an extreme form of gender-based violence. An analysis of recent national case law reveals that some murders are undoubtedly acts of domestic violence of extreme gravity, but which took place after the perpetrator had previously committed various forms of physical or other violence against the victim, which had been reported to the judicial authorities. Currently, there is an extensive international and European legislative framework that is adequate for combating violence against women and domestic violence, but at the national level only three European countries have specific criminal provisions for this type of homicide. The difficulty in finding consolidated European data on the phenomenon is linked to the lack of uniformity in the classification of homicides at European level, but also to regulatory gaps in the definition of family member or domestic violence, to which are added, inherently, unequal power dynamics, gender stereotypes, and harmful social norms. We have identified a number of legal and criminological considerations that justify the introduction of a new criminal offense in the form of femicide/feminicide as a distinct crime in Romanian criminal law, both from the perspective of the specific possibility of individualizing the main penalty, the specific nature of the investigation and prosecution of such an offence, the complementary and accessory penalties that may be applied, and from the perspective of the specialization of judges and prosecutors in the investigation and prosecution of such cases, with the stated aim of providing a comprehensive framework for the effective prevention and combating of violence against women and domestic violence at national level, but also throughout the European Union.

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