JERUSALEM (VINnews) — In a new legal precedent, Israel’s Higher Rabbinical Court sent a female get refuser to jail Sunday, after she had refused to accept a get from her husband for the past four years. The woman was arrested by police after locking herself in her home and forcing them to break into the house.
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The woman was tracked by the Aguna department in the Beis Din which hired a private investigator to locate the woman, who had not been in her home. When the woman finally returned home, police were called to enforce the Beis Din’s order and forcibly entered after she didn’t open the door for them.
The couple had married nearly 20 years ago and have two children aged 16 and 13. Issues arose early on in the marriage and in 2018 the husband filed for divorce in the rabbinical court after a long discussion in family court had concluded that he would receive custody of the children. The woman did not show up to hearings at the family court or the Beis Din and when she was forcibly brought to Beis Din she refused to answer any questions and was freed on bail.
The woman showed up to the next hearings but refused to receive a get and claimes she wanted Shalom Bayis instead. Attempts to place sanctions on the woman by revoking her drivers license and freezing her account also failed. The Beis Din also hired a psychologist to deal with the woman but he stated that she refuses to cooperate and release her husband. The Beis Din also attempted to influence the woman via her place of work and via social workers but all of these attempts were also unsuccessful in persuading her to change her mind.
Finally Chief Rabbi David Lau was asked to issue a warrant for incarcerating the woman after she refused to accept any form of compromise and police implemented the warrant and placed her in custody.
Director of Courts Eli Ben-Dahan said that “The court made every effort not to use the tools at its disposal to force the woman to accept its decisions. Unfortunately the woman refused to cooperate and insisted on chaining her husband in an unwanted marriage. I hope in the coming days the woman will understand her situation and agree to accept her get.”
Many people mistakenly believe that “marital abuse” is always the husband against the wife. This article makes it clear that there are also many times when it’s the wife who is abusive against the husband.
Why not just get the husband a ‘heter meah’ and he can remarry? Or is the entire issue a custody battle between the sides?
While such situations are always tragic, it is welcoming that we see that there are evil women out there as much as there are evil men. On discussion fora, there are voices that attribute all shalom bayis problems and divorces to men that are abusive and terrible. Others claim that greedy women are responsible. To date, there are no scientific studies that reflect percentages. But the obervations from those in the field (rabbonim, dayanim, toanim, therapists, etc.) suggest that the ratio is close to 50-50. So generalizations are unwarranted.
The typically recognized situation of get refusal is the man unwilling to give the get. This event portrays that this stereotype is inaccurate.
It’s not my business but since you did post this story.
First there’s no details given about why she’s refusing the Get.
At this age of 13 & 16 the kids should have their own opinion about where to live. Of course they could have been brainwashed against her, but than even she regained custody they wouldn’t stay by her.
Finally, he’s a man, if the beis din feels so strongly then just give him heter meah rabbonim, and let them just ignore her.
Heter Meah is only done as a very last resort.
It’s also in her benefit to receive a get.
If he gets a heter meah, she will be “chained”, perhaps for life.
what about hter maoh rabbanim?
This is great, there should be many more courts & laws that enforces more sanctions against more sinners as well, and once again make following the torah laws great again.
Why couldn’t the husband get a heter to marry a second wife , a luxury that a woman in Halacha can never receive ?
I shall repeat my comment. It is not a Jewish method of punishment to jail someone. And in addition, the husband can get heter meah rabanim
Has a man ever been jailed under these sort of circumstances?