A bill to add all forms of domestic violence as grounds for divorce in Mississippi has failed to advance after the measure died in a state House committee. Advocates who supported the change say that, under existing state law, women can struggle to obtain a divorce if they are the victims of violence and their husband does not “consent” to the divorce. Additionally, current state law does not recognize psychological or economic abuse as grounds for divorce, only “habitual cruel and inhuman treatment,” which critics say is open to interpretation and often hard to prove. Opponents of the bill said it could “open the floodgates” to more divorce in the state, and that merely arguing loudly with a spouse could be interpreted as abuse.
Compiled from: Smith, Sarah, Mississippi Legislators Kill Domestic Abuse Bill, US News and World Report (February 28, 2017).