Threat to life and health is a serious offense for which there is an article in the Criminal Code. The police are required to respond to every report of a threat to life. Threats are not always carried out, which, of course, is for the better, but intimidation never leaves its mark on the victim.
A person who has reason to believe that these threats will be carried out loses the opportunity to work normally, experiences stress and has every reason to demand, in addition to criminal punishment, compensation for moral damage. In this article we will talk about where to go if you are threatened, how to correctly draw up a statement and how to prove the fact of the threat.
Threats to life and criminal law
Threats can bring a person to a state of panic or nervous breakdown, and therefore are recognized as a criminal offense. They are considered both as an independent crime (Article 119 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) and as part of other violations, for example, extortion (Article 163).
When the court considers a case under Art. 119, he draws attention to the presence of the following characteristic features:
Reality of threats
The attacker must not just make intimidating speeches, but make the victim believe that the “promises” can be fulfilled. “The power of persuasion” is ensured by the demonstration or use of weapons or other objects that can cause bodily harm, assault, etc.
Subjective assessment of the victim
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It does not matter whether the offender intended to carry out his threats or not, the main thing is that the victim sincerely believed that a real threat loomed over his life and well-being.
Injuries
Often the perpetrator inflicts minor or moderate bodily harm on the intimidated person in order to demonstrate the feasibility of ominous “promises.”
Threats to human health and life are a crime of public prosecution. This means that the case is initiated not upon receipt of a statement from the victim, but upon the discovery of a violation of criminal law.
A victim who contacts the police station does not have the right to later withdraw the statement, as is possible, for example, in the case of beatings. The criminal investigation will not stop from such a step.
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How to prove the fact of a threat
Since cases under Article 119 of the Criminal Code “Threat of Murder” are initiated in a private-public manner, that is, the victim himself is the prosecutor, and not the prosecutor, then the collection of evidence lies entirely on the shoulders of the victim.
To bring an attacker to justice, you need to have strong arguments. The following evidence may be accepted as evidence by the court:
- screenshots of correspondence on social networks;
- printouts of SMS correspondence containing threats;
- threats recorded on a tape recorder;
- recordings of telephone conversations;
- video recordings;
- photographs of threats written on walls.
Some of the most important evidence can be the testimony of witnesses. And if there are no eyewitnesses, then you can get a description of the attacker from your neighbors. If it is impartial and it states that the criminal was drinking and behaved aggressively, all this will be taken into account by the court and will “play” in favor of the victim.
What threats are punishable?
If one person threatened another, his actions will not necessarily become the subject of a criminal case. The application will be accepted from the victim who was promised to be deprived of his life or physical health.
The Criminal Code of the Russian Federation only covers threats that indicate the possible infliction of grievous bodily harm. The last concept includes the following:
- disablement;
- facial disfigurement;
- causing traumatic brain injury;
- organ loss or complete dysfunction.
It is important to distinguish between a threat to kill and an attempted murder. These compounds are differentiated by the motives of the criminal. For example, if a person held another person at gunpoint, but never fired, the case falls under Art. 119. If he did not take the life of his victim only because neighbors rushed to help, this is attempted murder.
Where to contact
To ensure your safety, the document can be sent to any police department at any time of the day or night. But it is better if it is immediately submitted to the department in whose jurisdiction the illegal act was committed. If the application is of a collective nature or is submitted on behalf of an organization, then the direct applicant must have a power of attorney to carry out these actions.
In addition to visiting the ATC unit in person, submitting an application via a virtual network is currently permitted. The police are required to review it even if it is not signed by a specific person. To do this, you need to go to the official website of the police. To submit an application, you do not need to pre-register on this resource, since there is no personal account provided here.
What to do if you are threatened?
If you are threatened with deprivation of life or health, do not panic. Begin collecting evidence to accompany your police report. Their roles may include:
- video and audio materials;
- recording telephone conversations;
- screenshots of correspondence on the Internet;
- photographs of threatening inscriptions, etc.
Judicial practice shows that the easiest way to expose a criminal is to bring witnesses. Their testimony will help law enforcement agencies understand the situation both at the stage of the preliminary investigation and in court.
When all the necessary materials have been collected, head to the police.
The role of the witness
Calling a witness to the police.
An eyewitness is a key figure in criminal proceedings in cases involving threats to life and health. The court's guilty or acquittal decisions are based on his testimony. The legislative framework of the Russian Federation places responsibility for searching and attracting witnesses on the injured party.
Timely appeals to law enforcement agencies by eyewitnesses of the impending crime saved many lives. The civic duty of every Russian is to immediately report to the appropriate authorities about probable offenses that he is ready to witness. Legal norms provide for the possibility of anonymously filing a statement about planned criminal actions.
How and where to write an application?
The first authority where you should apply is the police station at your place of registration. If you go to the wrong branch, you will lose the time needed to send it. You can bring the document in person or send it online through the government services website.
For an application to be accepted, it must be written in a certain form. There is no single standard, but try contacting the local police officer: he will probably have a sample. Under no circumstances should you use obscene language or excessive emotionality in your document, otherwise it will not be accepted. Be sure to include your full name on the application: anonymous complaints will not be considered.
The threat to life form must contain three parts:
Heading
This indicates who is sending the application and to whose name. Write down the number of the police department where the document is being submitted, the name of its head, your name and registered address.
Main part
Here you should write a text describing the current situation. You need to describe as informatively, but succinctly as possible, how the criminal threatened you, that he promised to take your life or cause serious bodily harm, or intimidated you. The more details and details, the better for the investigation.
Conclusion
This indicates what documents and evidence are attached to the application. At the end the current date and the personal signature of the applicant are placed.
If any of the listed parts are missing, your application may be rejected immediately or rejected based on the results of a pre-investigation check.
If you were refused to initiate a criminal case based on the results of consideration of your appeal, you have the right to appeal the decision to the Prosecutor's Office or the FSB. These authorities will need to prove that the threat to life is high.
Statement of threats: rules for drafting in 2019
A properly drafted threat statement should include the following information:
- The name of the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to which the victim applies (for example: Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for the Basmanny District of Moscow);
- Last name, first name and patronymic of the victim;
- Residence address;
- Contact phone number or email address;
- Description of the situation that arose (the applicant must indicate who threatened him, how exactly, where and under what circumstances);
- List of witnesses (if threats were made in front of witnesses, we recommend listing their full names and contact information known to you);
- List of attached evidence (for example, printed screenshots or a flash drive with recordings of phone calls);
- Please consider the application and initiate a criminal case;
- Date of application (in DD/MM/YYYY format).
threat statements (version current as of 2022)
Example of a police report about death threats
To the Head of the Police Department for the Kitai-Gorod district
Durov Vladimir Alexandrovich
from Bernard Juno Augustovna
address: 119618, Moscow,
Varvarinskaya st., 9, apt. 15
telephone
Statement
about a threat to life
On the night of April 3-4, 2022, my ex-husband, Daniil Mstislavovich Golitsyn, threatened to kill me.
The threat was made to them under the following circumstances: late at night he came to my house drunk and with an ax in his hand. He knocked and rang the doorbell. When I didn’t open the door and said I would call the police, my ex-husband began threatening to kill me. He shouted that he would kill me and my newborn child, and hit the door with an ax.
My neighbors can confirm that he threatened to kill me:
- Shmidt Georgy Edgarovich (address: Moscow, Varvarinskaya st., 9, apt. 13, telephone)
- Schmidt Nadezhda Stefanovna (address: Moscow, Varvarinskaya st., 9, apt. 13, telephone)
- Tsvetkova Yana Leonidovna (address: Moscow, Varvarinskaya st., 9, apt. 11, telephone)
I believe that these threats are justified, since during our marriage Golitsyn D.M. He repeatedly beat me while under the influence of alcohol and drugs, and threatened to cut off my hands and kill me.
I ask you to consider the application and initiate action against Golitsyn D.M. criminal case.
"04" April 2022
Signature: _______________ /full name/
threat statements (version current as of 2022)
Note! If you have questions or encounter any difficulties when preparing an application to law enforcement agencies, you can always seek free legal advice from the specialists of the CenterSoveta portal. The average waiting time for a response from a lawyer is 15 minutes.
How will the attacker be punished?
The decision on the extent of responsibility for the criminal is made by the court, to which the case is transferred at the end of the investigation. Punishment depends on the motives of the offender. There are two options:
Threats without aggravating circumstances - the maximum penalty is limited to two years of imprisonment or forced labor. A crime committed on the basis of racial, religious, political hatred or enmity is punishable by five years in prison or forced labor.
If the criminal carried out his threats and beat the victim, his actions are not qualified under Art. 119, and fall under other articles dealing with causing physical harm - 111,112,115.
Author of the article
Dmitry Leonov
Work experience 15 years, specialization - housing, family, inheritance, land, criminal cases.
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Special credit
The fact that the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation does not provide for the possibility of prosecution for threats of a type other than murder or injury to health cannot limit the right of a citizen to contact the police if any threats arise.
Let us especially focus on threats of dissemination of defamatory information or threats of destruction of property, the authorship of which in recent times often belongs to collectors.
Such threats should not be tolerated, moreover, if they cause significant harm to a person’s normal life.
Writing on walls and cars, making threatening calls - all this is an offense that can lead to the revocation of the collection agency's license. Therefore, statements about illegal actions of debt collectors must be written.
What is considered an insult
To understand how to punish the perpetrator, it is necessary to determine what actions qualify as an insult under the law. Only if there is evidence of these actions does it make sense to submit an application. Now liability for this violation is established under Art. 5.61 Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. It interprets insult as a humiliation of a person’s honor and dignity, expressed in a grossly obscene form. Sometimes the words are accompanied by immoral actions towards the victims.
A statement about foul language is written if:
- insults come verbally (in a meeting or over the phone) and in writing (on paper, in instant messengers, by email);
- you are publicly humiliated using obscene language on the street in the presence of other people;
- Colleagues or superiors at your workplace throw derogatory language at you;
- they defame honor and dignity in the media, blogs, and social networks.
IMPORTANT!
No one is allowed to express themselves indecently: according to the above-mentioned article of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, both citizens and organizations, as well as officials and civil servants, are subject to punishment.
Deadlines for submission and review
Regardless of whether a person has been insulted, or is under threat, or may be in other danger, for example, reprisal or even murder, a decision based on the submitted application is made within three days. In some cases, the period can be extended to ten or even thirty days. The applicant is given a coupon on the basis of which he can track this period.
If the decision that was made does not correspond to the legitimate interests of a citizen, he has the right to appeal to another authority, which in this case is the prosecutor's office.
The legislative framework
To file a complaint and hold the offender accountable under the law, you can rely on the following legislative acts:
- Federal Law "On the Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation" N 2202-1-F dated January 17, 1992. (as amended on July 29, 2017).
- Federal Law “On the procedure for considering appeals from citizens of the Russian Federation” No. 59-FZ dated May 2, 2006.
- Civil Code of the Russian Federation N 14-FZ dated January 26, 1996. (as amended on March 28, 2017).
- Criminal Code of the Russian Federation N 63-ФЗ dated June 13, 1996. (as amended on July 18, 2017).
- Code of the Russian Federation on Administrative Offenses N 195-FZ dated December 3, 2001. (as amended on July 29, 2017).
Magistrate's Court
If law enforcement agencies refused to initiate a criminal case or the applicant wants to immediately file a claim for monetary compensation for the material damage caused, he can directly appeal to the Magistrate’s Court. But, given the seriousness of the situation, it is better to entrust the process of drawing up a claim to a lawyer who will give valuable recommendations and help clearly formulate the requirements.
It will be necessary to submit three identical packages of documents to the office (this also applies to the collected evidence) and pay a state fee, compensation for which can subsequently be received from the defendant.
Important! Even if the court recognizes the threat to life as unfounded, it can hold the violator accountable under another article of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation for violating the right to privacy.
