Assault by Strangulation or Suffocation in Michigan (MCL 750.84)

In Michigan, an allegation that one person choked or smothered another can be charged as a felony. MCL 750.84(1)(b) makes it a crime to assault another person "by strangulation or suffocation," punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.^[1] The statute has no injury requirement and no requirement that the person lost consciousness.^[2][3]

This page explains what the statute covers, how it defines strangulation, what a jury is asked to decide, how the charge relates to domestic assault under MCL 750.81, and what a felony under this section means for sentencing and afterward.

What does MCL 750.84 cover?

The section describes two different ways of committing the same 10-year felony.^[4]

Subsection	Conduct	What makes it this offense	Maximum
MCL 750.84(1)(a)	Assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder	The intent: the person meant to cause great bodily harm	10 years, $5,000, or both[4]
MCL 750.84(1)(b)	Assault by strangulation or suffocation	The method: pressure on the throat or neck, or blocking the nose or mouth	10 years, $5,000, or both[1]

The two are alternatives. A strangulation charge does not require the prosecutor to prove an intent to do great bodily harm.^[1] For the first alternative, jurors are told that great bodily harm means any physical injury that could seriously harm the health or function of the body, and that actual injury is not necessary, although an injury may be considered as evidence of intent.^[6]

Neither alternative mentions a domestic relationship. The statute speaks of assaulting "another person," so the charge is the same whether the people involved are spouses, dating partners, relatives or strangers.^[4]

How does Michigan law define strangulation or suffocation?

The definition is in the statute itself. "Strangulation or suffocation" means "intentionally impeding normal breathing or circulation of the blood by applying pressure on the throat or neck or by blocking the nose or mouth of another person."^[2]

Three points follow from that wording:

• The definition covers impeding either breathing or blood circulation.^[2]
• It covers two methods: pressure on the throat or neck, and blocking the nose or mouth.^[2]
• The impeding has to be intentional.^[2]

What does the prosecutor have to prove?

The model criminal jury instruction for this offense, M Crim JI 17.35, sets out three elements.^[7]

1. The defendant committed a battery on the complainant. A battery is a forceful, violent, or offensive touching of another person or something closely connected with that person.^[7]
2. The touching was intended by the defendant, that is, not accidental, and it was against the complainant's will. The instruction states that it does not matter whether the touching caused an injury.^[7]
3. The battery was committed by strangulation or suffocation, as defined above.^[7]

As in every criminal case, the defendant is presumed innocent and the prosecutor has to prove each element beyond a reasonable doubt.^[8]

Why is choking treated so differently from other domestic assaults?

A first-offense domestic assault is a misdemeanor with a maximum of 93 days in jail and a $500 fine.^[9] Aggravated domestic assault, which requires a serious or aggravated injury, is a misdemeanor with a maximum of 1 year and $1,000.^[10] Aggravated domestic assault is defined as an assault without a weapon and without intent to do great bodily harm; strangulation is a separate offense under MCL 750.84.^[11]

The section's history shows one amendment since 1948, 2012 PA 367, effective April 1, 2013, and the sentencing guidelines list assault by strangulation or suffocation with that same effective date.^[12] The jury instruction for it was adopted in September 2014.^[7] There has been no later amendment to the section; the maximum is 10 years as of October 2026.^[12][4]

Can it be charged together with other offenses?

Yes. MCL 750.84(3) provides that the section "does not prohibit a person from being charged with, convicted of, or punished for any other violation of law arising out of the same conduct."^[13] In People v McKewen (2024), the Michigan Supreme Court relied on that subsection in a case where the defendant was convicted of both assault with intent to do great bodily harm and felonious assault for the same conduct.^[13]

In a domestic case that can mean a strangulation count filed alongside a domestic assault count, an interference with a 911 call count, or an unlawful imprisonment count.^[13] The model instruction for domestic assault is also written so a jury can be told it may consider domestic assault as a less serious crime when a greater offense is charged.^[14]

Which court hears the case?

A charge under MCL 750.84 starts in district court with an arraignment, a probable cause conference and a preliminary examination. If the district judge binds the case over, it is tried and sentenced in circuit court.^[15] The steps are laid out in the felony case timeline and the guide to the preliminary examination.

Evidence when there is no visible injury

Because injury is not an element, a case does not depend on a photograph of a mark.^[3] The kinds of evidence the rules address include:

• Statements to police. MCL 768.27c allows a statement that narrates, describes or explains the infliction or threat of physical injury to be admitted in a domestic violence case if five statutory requirements are met.^[16]
• Statements to medical providers. Statements made for medical treatment are admitted on the rationale that a patient has a self-interested motive to speak truthfully to get proper care.^[17]
• Photographs. A photograph comes in on testimony from someone familiar with the injury or scene that it is accurate, and photographs are not excluded merely because a witness could describe the same thing.^[18][19]
• Medical opinion. In People v Alexander, a child-abuse case, the Court of Appeals said that where a diagnosis can be drawn from a physical examination, an expert may testify that an injury was not accidentally self-inflicted.^[20]

The detail on each of these, and on how the defense tests them, is in Strangulation evidence in Michigan, Photographs and medical records and Statements to police under MCL 768.27c.

Sentencing and what follows a conviction

• Sentencing guidelines. Both alternatives in MCL 750.84(1) are Class D crimes against a person.^[21] Class D roughly corresponds to offenses with a 10-year maximum.^[22] See Felony sentencing guidelines.
• No domestic violence deferral. The deferral in MCL 769.4a applies only to a violation of MCL 750.81 or 750.81a.^[5]
• No reduced probation. A conviction under MCL 750.84 is on the list of offenses that are not eligible for reduced probation.^[23]
• It counts as a prior. A conviction under MCL 750.84 against a person in a domestic relationship is a qualifying prior conviction for second- and third-offense domestic assault.^[24]
• Youthful trainee status. A court must revoke Holmes Youthful Trainee Act status if the trainee pleads guilty to or is convicted of a violation of MCL 750.84 during the assignment.^[25]
• Firearms. A person convicted of a felony may not possess a firearm in Michigan until at least 3 years after the sentence is fully completed; for a "specified felony," which includes a felony with an element of the use, attempted use or threatened use of physical force, the period is 5 years and a circuit court restoration order is also needed.^[26][27][28] Federal law separately bars firearm possession by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year.^[29]

What people get wrong

"It is only a felony if the person passed out." The definition turns on impeding breathing or circulation. It says nothing about unconsciousness.^[2]

"No marks means no case." The jury instruction says it does not matter whether the touching caused an injury.^[3] The same is true of ordinary assault; see Can you be charged without an injury?

"The prosecutor has to prove an intent to cause great bodily harm." That is the other half of the statute. Strangulation is a separate alternative with the same maximum.^[4][1]

"It is the same thing as aggravated domestic assault." Aggravated domestic assault is a 1-year misdemeanor that requires a serious or aggravated injury.^[10] Assault by strangulation is a 10-year felony that requires no injury.^[1][3]