"Beat & Release": Complaints? She Had a Few, but Then Again...

türkçe  links to original Turkish article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 16 November 2020)

Smile Vokan B.! You're on Psychopath Camera!

In Palandöken district of Erzurum province, in the garden of a 

hospital, Volkan B. (40) grabbed his wife Kübra T. (21) by her hair 

and shouted "are you making fun of me!? I'll kill you!", before 

beating her to a pulp.  However, since Kübra hanım did not agree to

file a complaint, Volkan B. was released.

The incident occurred on 19 July at the Nenehatun Maternity Hospital's

garden.  A woman at the hospital recorded the event on her cellphone

and told Volkan B. she would call the police.  Unconcerned, Volkan B.

continued to beat Kübra hanım.  Another woman passing by said "what

are you doing hitting her! Are we up in the mountains somewhere?!"

At this point, Volkan B. lifted Kübra hanım from the ground and the 

couple left.

When the images of the incident were posted on Twitter, there was a 

strong reaction, which prompted the police to action andto  take 

Volkan B. into custody.  But when Kübra hanım declined to file a 

complaint, her husband was released on judicial supervision. 

The ancient Turkic letters on his t-shirt stand for: 

Inveterate Wife-Beater.

The case continued, though, and the Erzurum public prosecutor charged

Volkan B. with "threatening, insulting and simple assault".  In his 

statement to the court, Volkan B. explained that he held Kübra hanım 

by the neck but he didn't recall (!) insulting or threatening her.  As for

Kübra hanım, she stated that "he beat me with his hands and insulted 

me.  But I'm not filing a complaint."  

Consequently, the "insulting and simple assault" charges against Volkan 

B. were dismissed but the "threatening" charge was forwarded by the 

court to the restraining order bureau.  When Kübra hanım agreed to

get a restraining order the entire case was dismissed and Volkan B.

walked free.

Palandöken is just south of Erzurum city.