Based both on an extensive literature review and field work, this research aims to analyze the limits and tensions faced by women in situations of violence that had access to justice through the domestic violence courts of the State Court of Justice of Pará (Brazil). For the theoretical component of this study, a review of critical criminology and feminist theories elaborated in the socio-legal field was conducted. As for the empirical part, this included both, observations of hearing procedures, as well as semi-structured interviews. The interviews allowed to understand the paths taken by women in situations of domestic violence within the judicial agency, as well as the magistrates perceptions about their own work. The discussion presented is intertwined with the narratives collected in the field, which help to identify the problems involved in the relationship between the criminal justice system and women in situations of violence, a relationship marked by varied forms of institutional violence – revictimization – against these women. The analysis highlight, above all, these women’s narratives and perceptions about the criminal justice system and the way they feel treated within court proceedings. The fieldwork made possible to identify the difficulties related to the inability of protection mechanisms and of legal assistance contained in Law no. 11.340/2006, known as “Maria da Penha” Law, as well as revictimization processes triggered by state agents. The methodological approach is qualitative and interdisciplinary.
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