This thesis addresses the reporting of men’s intimate partner violence to the police from the perspectives of abused women. The general aim is to examine women’s views on reporting violence to the police, and their interactions wi th the criminal justice system when leaving violent men. The main theoretical framework consists of theories on men’s violence against women, on the pro- cess of ending violence and on organizations. In this thesis, ending violence is conceptualized in a wider sense than that of breaking up. A woman is consid- ered to have broken free when: she has separated from her partner, she has freed herself emotionally from the abuser, she has defined the violence as inti- mate partner violence, and the man is no longer abusing her. Qualitative in- terviews were conducted during 2010 and 2011 with twenty women with ex- perience of abuse by a former male partner. This thesis explores a complex decision- making process involved in report- ing violence to the police, which these wom en apparently increasingly regard- ed as a viable option as they struggled to free themselves from violent men – both emotionally, cognitively and by separation – even as the abuse was still ongoing. When making the decision, the woman considers the conseque nces of a police report, both regarding ending violence, and concerning her life situa- tion in general. This thesis also explores the importance of a police report for the process of breaking free from violence. The results indicate that the judicial response to violence, and the outcome of the legal process in particular, is of central im- portance. Responses that validate the women’s experiences of violence, arrest and incarceration, protection and, ultimately, conviction can contribute to the process of bre aking free from violence . Conversely, responses that invalidate the women’s experiences of violence, insufficient protection and preliminary judicial investigations being closed can impede the process of breaking free. The results also indicate that both a busers and abused may to view the out- come of the legal process as an indication of what is generally considered “right” and “wrong” in Swedish society, which may in turn directly influence whether or not the violence will cease. Finally, this thesis also examines the criminal justice system’s practical response to violence during the legal pro- cess, against the background of the Swedish government’s gender -equality goal that men’s violence against women must cease; the legal system has been as- signed a major role in its realization. Findings indicate that while the judicial system is invested in counteracting men’s violence against women, the way vi- olence is handled in practice may have the opposite effect, and, by extension, help reproduce gender inequality.