France is preparing to include coercive control in its legislation

France is preparing to include coercive control in its legislation; the amendment is being studied on Monday October 5 in the National Assembly. In the United Kingdom, this offense has existed since 2015. It is defined as controlling, isolating, monitoring or repeatedly exercising control over one's spouse or ex-spouse. It can be punished with five years of imprisonment.

For ten years, the famous weather presenter in Wales, Ruth Dodsworth, lived under the influence of her husband. She was constantly monitored. "I had to show him my phone. And if I was traveling for a shoot with someone, I had to Facetime [a video call] to prove to him that I was with the person I told him I was with. I didn't realize that over the years, I had lost contact with my friends and my own family," she says.

This domination is gradually accompanied by physical violence. Ruth Dodsworth is convinced that this offense which penalizes coercive control saved her life. "If the police hadn't listened to me, if they hadn't recognized certain signs of coercive control, I wouldn't be here today, talking to you. It's a real lifesaver. It gave me my life back," she explains gratefully. Her husband will receive three years in prison.

But ten years after the passing of this law, conviction remains difficult to obtain. “A person can embark on this whole procedure: going to the police, reporting the facts, testifying in court against their ex-partner… And despite everything, this person may not be convicted,” recognizes family law lawyer Tessa Bray. In England and Wales, despite 50,000 coercive control offenses recorded in one year, only 853 convictions were handed down in 2024. That is barely 5% of cases.