What to do and where to turn if threatened with physical harm or murder?

Existing in society, we have to put up with the ugly behavior of individuals. When this behavior does not affect us and our family, we do not pay attention to it. When ugly behavior becomes unacceptable and affects our personal space, we turn to law enforcement for protection and immerse ourselves in the study of laws.

According to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, a crime is considered not only an active illegal action that falls under the norms of the Code, but also the intention to commit such an action.

The threat, no matter in what form it appears, is criminally punishable. At any given time, it can turn from a potential promise into a real crime.

What to do if you are threatened, and what threats you should really be afraid of, we will tell you in this article.

How to act and behave if you or your loved ones are threatened

A threat to life, health, well-being and business reputation is not a pleasant situation.
Unfortunately, threats are now very common, and in reality almost everyone faces them. Where the conflict could have been resolved amicably and an apology made, the matter often ends more seriously. You may not only be threatened with physical violence or disseminate information discrediting your honor, dignity and business reputation, but also be shown dangerous objects or even weapons. At first glance, threats for an unprepared person can be very scary. But it’s worth cooling down a little and thinking about how best to behave in this situation so that you and the people close to you don’t get hurt? In order to figure out how real the threat of violence is from arrogant and unpleasant people who disturb your peace, and also to develop the right line of behavior, you should listen to the advice of lawyers. If you are receiving physical threats, you should not assume that the situation will resolve on its own. Timely protection is necessary to ensure personal safety for yourself and your loved ones. This article will talk about exactly where to look for protection from threats and prevent a negative development of the situation.

Typical cases when they can threaten

Situations in which there may be an obvious or hidden threat of harm to the life or health, as well as property of citizens, can be provoked by domestic conflicts, quarrels between neighbors or at work, persecution for mercenary reasons or hooligan motives.

The most typical cases that are accompanied by the expression of a threat to use physical violence or kill a person include:

1. domestic conflicts between family members;
2. if debt collectors threaten you with violence over the phone or in person;
3. if a neighbor threatens as a result of a protracted dispute over a parking space or regarding the presentation of justified claims of inappropriate behavior at home;
4. if the threat is directed towards children from peers at school or from friends in their social circle;
5. if similar actions are committed by a rejected ex-partner in a relationship for reasons of jealousy or revenge.

What is the threat?

When making threats of physical violence, a sober assessment of the nature of the threat, its reality, how the demands are expressed, and motives hidden at first glance will be required. There is no need to think that if you have known a person well for a long time, then he is completely safe. The attacker may well not only intimidate, but also move from verbal threats to real actions.

Terms of liability for threats

You will have to answer for personal or anonymous threats in the following cases. According to the legislation of the Russian Federation, a citizen is held accountable if the threat is characterized by the following signs:

• you are shown weapons or other equally dangerous objects;
• danger to life or health in reality in verbal form or in the form of actions;
• real threats to disseminate defamatory information.

If there are threats to your property and material assets in writing, it will not be possible to bring the offender to criminal liability, since he will be held accountable for material damage in fact. In addition to threats, there are often demands to perform certain actions or calls to refrain from them. Let's give an example. For example, this could be coercion to commit robbery if they promise to commit physical violence. Recently, requests via the Internet or telephone calls from collectors have become more frequent because you did not pay off the debt on time. This is not all, and the list goes on.

What you need to pay attention to Even with all the legality of the offender’s demands from you to perform some actions, you cannot threaten to use force, etc. If the fact of the threat is confirmed, then punishment in accordance with the Criminal Code will be required.

Unlawful actions against children

If a teenager finds himself in these circumstances, the situation can become many times more complicated, because children are not always able to take adequate actions to protect their rights and interests. Even if the threat arose as a result of peer communication (for example, a boy expresses threats against girls in his class), adolescents may try to resolve the conflict on their own without the involvement of adults.

If such a situation arises, you cannot do without the help of adults and law enforcement officers. When contacting a child, any police officer is obliged to use all the powers granted to him by law to eliminate illegal actions.

In addition, other authorities are required to respond to the occurrence of similar situations:

1. administration of the educational institution;
2. guardianship and trusteeship authorities;
3. officials of the prosecutor's office;
4. Commission on Juvenile Affairs.

If the child has not reached the age of majority, legal representatives, including parents, can send an official appeal on his behalf.

How to deal with threats

If you are threatened, you should not take the threats lightly and under no circumstances follow the lead of the offenders. If possible, be sure to retain evidence of the threat. They can take various forms: in writing, in audio or video format, correspondence by e-mail or on social networks. With the help of this evidence, the search for the perpetrators is greatly simplified. In the event of a threat, you should immediately contact law enforcement agencies, since reports of potential crimes are registered and verified by the police service. After the facts are verified by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, an unequivocal answer about the fact of the threat will follow. If these actions are confirmed, the violator will be held accountable. Police officers will help you in this situation and identify the perpetrators.

Collectors threats

In the context of growing debt of citizens under credit obligations, the sphere of debt collection still allows for illegal actions on the part of collectors. If debt collection work is carried out by a dubious collection agency, the likelihood of threats and actual use of violence increases significantly.

What to do in such a situation? First of all, it is necessary to record the source by which the threat was expressed:

1. record a telephone conversation using any technical means (telephone, voice recorder, etc.);
2. keep the threatening mail sent by debt collectors;
3. record a personal conversation with a representative of collection offices on audio or video recording.

After receiving an official request, the police officer is obliged to conduct a comprehensive investigation of the facts presented, including the recorded sources of threats. Even if criminal prosecution is not established in the actions of the guilty person, this will make it possible to take control of the debt collection process and move it into the legal mainstream.

What are the most dangerous threats?

The most dangerous among all other threats are those associated with the use of physical force, demonstration of weapons, damage to property, etc. The most unpleasant thing is that you can encounter this phenomenon in unexpected places: on the street, on a bus or in the subway, or one-on-one. Threats that are made not only towards you, but also your family, friends, colleagues, etc. are punishable. You should not take violent action in response. Otherwise, you will receive liability for causing bodily harm in a mild form; from the category of victims, you will automatically become offenders. How and where to apply. How to compose it correctly If you are being persecuted and threatened with murder and real danger. You should not delay the matter until unpleasant events develop. You need to immediately write a statement to the police or report the crime verbally. If you apply orally, then it is necessary to record a protocol form, which is personally checked and signed by you. The written statement must contain items such as:

• place, time and methods of incoming threats through personal contact using mail, phone calls, the Internet, etc.;
• the nature of the threat in the form of murder, infliction of bodily harm directly to you or your loved ones, dissemination of information discrediting your dignity and business reputation, etc.;
• contact information from persons who are witnesses and capable of confirming that you have received a verbal threat;
• links to written evidence, recording audio and video in the format of screenshots of pages on Internet resources;
• information about offenders, if you know the person’s identity or information about his location;
• the motives for the threat can be expressed in racial and religious hostility, political beliefs, etc.;
• other information to identify the person who is threatening you.

If the threat does not involve danger to life or serious harm to health, the person will not be punished. If you contact law enforcement agencies, this will happen only if the offender clearly indicates criminal intentions to cause grievous bodily harm or murder. In this case, a criminal case will be initiated and punishment will follow for threats to kill or serious harm to health, which under this article amounts to up to 5 years. If you contact the police, you will need to justify the reasons and conduct an investigation. If the threat is confirmed during the pre-investigation period, the responsibility for proving guilt will be assigned to the prosecution and the police. Submitting a report of a crime orally or in writing can occur to the territorial department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This is possible even when you are away from home, on vacation, on a business trip, etc. If you are threatened, you can contact the nearby police station. If you find yourself in danger on the streets or in other public places, simply call a police officer for help.

Threat as a type of criminal offense

According to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, a threat is an independent crime. For his qualification, it is absolutely irrelevant whether the criminal really intended to carry out his threats or only intimidated the victim.

The threat of murder or infliction of grievous bodily harm is regulated by Art. 119 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

This is a crime of minor gravity, it is being considered by the magistrate. It is almost impossible to get a real prison term for such a crime.

In order for the act to be recognized as a criminal offense, it is necessary that the victim takes the threats seriously and experiences fear and anxiety against the background of their manifestation.

In practice, it is enough that the victim gives evidence in which he indicates that the defendant said to him: “I will kill you!”

The threat can be expressed in several actions:

• Orally;
• In writing (letters with threats);
• Gestures;
• Demonstration of weapons.

If suddenly, for unknown reasons, the threat does not reach the consciousness of the victim, the actions of the perpetrator will be classified as an attempted crime.

Third parties may be involved to carry out the act, through whom threats are transmitted to the addressee.

Corpus delicti

What to do if you are threatened with physical harm?

When they threaten to kill, you need to act with lightning speed. Any delay could cost your life. Therefore, you should seek help from the police as soon as possible.

Since the threat is a criminal offense, it has its own elements of crime:

• The object is human health. In fact, the crime does not involve him receiving any damage or injury, but his peace of mind suffers significantly from this.
• The objective side means that the threat must extend specifically to grave harm and causing death. Threats of property damage or vague threats do not give rise to a crime.
• The subjective side presupposes the direct intent of the perpetrator to frighten the victim and instill in him the fear that the threat may be carried out.
• Only a person over 16 years of age can be considered a subject.

To assess the reality of the threat expressed, law enforcement officers take into account the nature of the relationship between the parties, the nature and form of what was expressed, the circumstances of the conflict and the identity of the troublemaker.

The corpus delicti under Article 129 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine

So, let's talk about wording. Article 129 of the Criminal Code states that the rules can only be applied if:

1. They threatened with murder .
2. There is reason to believe that the threat is real.
3. The suspect had the ability and intention to carry out the threat.

What does this mean in practice? Let's look at a few common cases:

Probably, everyone can come up with a whole list of similar analogies when the threat is not considered real.

It is necessary to understand that the perception of the reality of the embodiment of a threat to life, specified in paragraph 1 of Article 129 of the Criminal Code, may also apply to the
personal perception of a potential victim.
In other words, if the applicant has reason to believe that his intentions are serious, a case can be opened. Let's consider this case using an example:

Conditions. Some Vasily and Oksana are former spouses. During the divorce, the couple had mutual claims of a property nature - there is a dispute about the ownership of the real estate. At some point, Oksana wrote a statement to the police that her ex-husband threatened to kill her in a conversation - they say that he is considering this possibility as one of the ways to resolve a property dispute.

Option 1. Oksana could not prove the fact of the threat - there are no witnesses, audio-video recording of the accepted format, etc. In addition, it is a known fact that Vasily is a primary school teacher who has the most flattering characteristics of colleagues and parents of students.

As a result, there are neither direct nor indirect grounds for initiating a case. Oksana will be denied.

Option 2. Oksana has witnesses to the threat from her ex-husband. In addition, it is easy to prove that Vasily belongs to an aggressive political group, and due to certain circumstances, possesses personal firearms.

In this version we came together:

• motive (real estate);
• ability to carry out threats (weapons);
• characterization of the suspect as an aggressive person;
• witness's testimonies.

Result: for a combination of reasons, it can be proven that Oksana takes the threat to life seriously, which means that a case should be opened.

Obviously, the main problem is proving the reality of the threat perception. An unprepared person, especially one in a state of strong emotional stress, is unlikely to be able to adequately summarize the evidence base. If you think that a threat really exists, it is better to contact a lawyer to handle such a case.