Here’s a clear list of common types of physical assaults in domestic violence (DV), often used in police reports, research, and survivor accounts. These are grouped by severity and method:
đź”´ Life-Threatening / High-Risk Assaults
- Strangulation / suffocation (hands, forearm, ligature, pillow, plastic bag, etc.)
- Drowning attempts (holding under water)
- Use of weapons (knives, guns, blunt objects)
- Head injuries (slamming head against wall/floor, blows causing concussion/traumatic brain injury)
- Burning (scalding with liquids, cigarettes, hot objects, chemicals)
đźź Severe Bodily Harm
- Broken bones / fractures (arms, ribs, jaw, nose, fingers)
- Dislocations / sprains
- Internal injuries (organ damage, ruptured spleen, internal bleeding)
- Deep cuts / lacerations
- Loss of teeth / dental injuries
🟡 Common Physical Assaults
- Punching / hitting with fists
- Slapping / open-hand hitting
- Kicking (legs, stomach, ribs, back)
- Shoving / pushing (into walls, down stairs, to the ground)
- Hair pulling
- Biting
- Twisting arms / fingers
- Grabbing hard enough to leave bruises
🟢 Visible Surface Injuries
- Bruising (arms, legs, torso, face, neck)
- Scratches / abrasions
- Red marks from grabbing or slapping
- Swelling (lips, eyes, face, limbs)
⚠️ Why this matters:
- Strangulation is often singled out as the most dangerous because victims can lose consciousness within seconds, and it strongly predicts later homicide.
- Even “minor” assaults (pushing, slapping) are rarely one-off — they’re usually part of a pattern that escalates.
