Surviving Strangulation: Preventing Injustice & Overcoming Defenses

Although dangerous and sometimes deadly, victims of strangulation frequently lack obvious signs of external injury, often leaving marks on the abuser as they fight for their life. Assaults or homicides that involve asphyxiation are particularly susceptible to being misunderstood by practitioners and manipulated by offenders. This creates unique challenges for investigators and prosecutors who often rely on external signs to identify a criminal assault or homicide. When this happens, survivors can be criminalized, predators avoid accountability, and we miss valuable opportunities to prevent further harm.

In some cases, experiencing a strangulation triggers a victim to kill the abuser. Without proper understanding of strangulation, evidence to justify the victims use of self-defense is often hidden in the homicide. This talk will also allow audience members to understand a variety of situations where victims of strangulation may use violence as a survival technique, as a strategy to minimize the severity of abuses, or to simply save their own life.

In a sexual assault that involves strangulation, practitioners often overlook the subtle but significant evidence that can corroborate the victims resistance or explain their compliance. Improved understanding can assist practitioners to successfully overcome the “rough sex” defense.

By gaining a deeper understanding of the nuances of strangulation and its implications for survivors, participants will be better equipped to respond effectively to cases intimate partner abuse, sexual assault, and human trafficking. This training provides practitioners a new lens to see behavior and injuries through the perspective of a survivor and offers better context to commonly misunderstood evidence.  By exploring the legal and psychological implications of survival, practitioners will be better equipped to navigate these difficult cases.

Speaker: Kelsey McKay, Attorney & Consultant

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