A review of 300 attempted strangulation cases - Part I: Criminal legal issues

Three hundred strangulation cases, submitted for misdemeanor prosecution to the San Diego City Attorney's Office, were evaluated to determine the sign s and symptoms of attempted strangulation that could be used to corroborate the victim's allegation of being "choked" for purposes of prosecution. The study reveals that a lack of training may have caused police and prosecuto rs to overlook symptoms of strangulation or to rely too heavily on the visi ble signs of strangulation. Because most victims of strangulation had no vi sible injuries or their injuries were too minor to photograph, opportunitie s for higher level criminal prosecution were missed. (C) 2001 Elsevier Scie nce Inc.