Putin signs law decriminalizing domestic violence

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law decriminalizing domestic violence. The law has been published on Russia’s official website containing legal information.

The law declares domestic violence an administrative, rather than criminal, offence, provided it is a first-time transgression, TASS reports.

The law amends Article 116 of the Russian Criminal Code by excluding physical assaults on relatives from criminal offences while a person who commits repeated assaults will face criminal charges.