Editorial: A dark stain on the police

Senseless murders like that of Bernice Cassar leave society collectively in mourning and it’s natural for that to transform into a public debate. But in our zeal to analyse the underlying dynamics of gender-based violence, we may be dismissing an even more basic issue: the state’s failure to keep citizens safe when they patently are not.

The recently implemented femicide law urges harsher sentences for murders committed with “femicidal intent”. And defendants in such cases can no longer argue they committed the crime out of “passion”. 

This was a good step forward and may help to put Cassar’s aggressor behind bars for longer.

But, crucially, it did not save her life.

What seems clear from the information that has emerged so far is that the state could have. Thanks to the reports filed by Cassar in the days before the murder, the state had all the information it needed to justify protecting her from her husband, who is now accused of killing her.

Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri did well to appoint an inquiry to understand the state’s shortcomings in this case. When the family sues for damages, such an inquiry could help the state form its legal position. But potential legal...