Mexico court sentences woman, 23, to six years in prison for killing the man who raped her

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A young woman is going to spend the next six years behind bars in Mexico for killing a man who assaulted and raped her at her home two years ago.

Roxana Ruiz will be appealing the sentence, which was handed down by Judge Mónica Osorio in Mexico on Monday, her attorney said.

'I feel sad, disappointed in (the) justice (system), they locked me up for nine months, they give me a sentence,' she said following the court hearing. 'If I had not defended myself, I would be the dead one.'

Her lawyer, Ángel Carrera, fears that Osorio's ruling could set 'a bad precedent' going forward if is not overturned.

'It's sending the message to women that, you know what, the law says you can defend yourself, but only to a point,' he said. 'He raped you, but you don't have the right to do anything.'

Judge Osorio backed her sentencing by indicating that Ruiz 'could have given him a blow to the head to defend herself and leaving him unconscious would have been enough.'

She also ordered Ruiz to make a $16,000 reparation payment to Sinai Cruz's family.

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