Up to 10 Years Jail for Choking, Strangling, or Suffocating a Family Member
Crimes Amendment (Non-fatal Strangulation) Bill 2023
Legislative Assembly
Legislative Council
Assent
Topics
criminal justice criminal law criminal penalties domestic violence family violence non-fatal strangulation physical assault public safety sentencing sexual assault sexual consent +6 more
Introduced by: The Hon Anthony Carbines MP (ALP); The Hon Jaclyn Symes MLC (ALP)
Links to official parliament websites
Effects of this bill
If this bill passes, it means that:
A person commits a crime if they intentionally choke, strangle or suffocate a family member, and faces up to 5 years jail.
A person commits a more serious crime if they intend to cause and actually cause an injury while strangling a family member, and faces up to 10 years jail.
People charged with intentionally causing injury through strangulation cannot use consent as a defence.
People charged with non-fatal strangulation during sexual activity can only use a consent defence if the victim consented or the person reasonably believed they consented, and such belief is not reasonable if the person did not say or do anything to check if the victim consented, unless the person has a mental illness or cognitive impairment.
A person cannot claim they did not know the victim was a family member to avoid the charge.
Medical procedures or body modifications done in good faith are not crimes under these rules.
Courts must consider that non-fatal strangulation by an intimate partner often indicates a higher risk of killing, escalating coercive control, and dominance, even if there are no physical signs.
The legal definition of family violence now includes choking, strangling, or suffocating a family member, or threatening to do so.