Myles Snyder – ABC 27 News – HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) – A Pennsylvania lawmaker has introduced legislation to make strangulation a felony.
Rep. Becky Corbin (R-Chester) says her proposal, House Bill 1581, would close a legal loophole that allows domestic abusers to escape prosecution. She said people who strangle their victims often face low-level misdemeanors that do not reflect the serious nature of their crime.
“When police or paramedics arrive and find a victim conscious and alert, it is sometimes assumed that the assault must not have been that serious. In reality, however, that individual may have been only seconds from death – nearly murdered,” Corbin said. “This bill would bring Pennsylvania law into line with those in 35 other states, recognizing the severity of this violent crime.”
Corbin’s bill would define criminal strangulation as “knowingly or intentionally impeding the breathing or circulation of blood of another person by applying pressure to the throat or neck, or blocking the nose and mouth of a person.”
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