Assault by Strangulation in NC: Class H Felony and Firearm Ban

Assault by strangulation in NC is a Class H felony under N.C.G.S. § 14-32.4(b). The state must prove you intentionally strangled another person and that the strangulation caused some physical injury. A conviction carries a minimum prison sentence between 4 and 25 months depending on your prior record, triggers a lifetime federal firearms ban, and in domestic cases keeps you in jail for up to 48 hours before any judge sets release conditions.¹

The charge does not require a domestic relationship. It applies to any strangulation that injures another person, whether the parties are spouses, strangers, roommates, or coworkers.

What the State Has to Prove

The statute is short. Prosecutors must show two things beyond a reasonable doubt: that you intentionally strangled another person, and that the strangulation caused physical injury.¹

Strangulation is not defined in the statute, but North Carolina courts have filled in the term. Complete closure of the airway is not required. Enough pressure on the throat to cause difficulty breathing is enough. Blocking the nose or mouth qualifies. The act can be done with hands, arms, a cord, clothing, or any object that restricts breathing or blood flow.

Intent means the act was deliberate rather than accidental. Courts look at hand positioning, how long the contact lasted, and anything said during the incident. The statute does not use the word “willfully,” so the prosecution does not need to prove you meant to cause a particular injury. Grabbing someone’s throat and squeezing on purpose is enough.

How Little Injury Counts

The physical injury element is where this charge surprises people. North Carolina courts define physical injury as any hurt, damage, or loss to the body. That is far lower than the threshold for most other felony assaults.¹

Redness on the neck, minor swelling, small scratches, and temporary soreness all satisfy the element. Petechiae, the tiny red spots left when blood vessels in the eyes or skin break under pressure, often appear after strangulation and are strong physical evidence. Temporary pain or difficulty swallowing also counts. The victim does not need to have sought medical care, visited a hospital, or lost consciousness.

In practice, an officer’s photographs of the neck and the victim’s own statement about pain are often the entire physical-injury case. Medical testimony is not required. Marks from strangulation fade quickly, so prosecutors can go forward even when nothing is visible by trial, relying on photos taken that night and on witness statements.

One boundary: if the strangulation causes injuries severe enough to create a substantial risk of death, serious permanent disfigurement, coma, extreme pain, or prolonged hospitalization, the charge upgrades to assault inflicting serious bodily injury under § 14-32.4(a), a Class F felony. If the strangulation kills the victim, the state charges homicide instead.

Prison Time by Prior Record Level

North Carolina uses structured sentencing. The punishment for a Class H felony turns on two things: the offense class and your Prior Record Level, which is calculated from points assigned to prior convictions.²

Prior Class H or I felonies add 2 points each. Prior Class E, F, or G felonies add 4 points. Higher felonies add 6 to 10 points. Most prior misdemeanors add 1 point. An extra point gets added if you committed the current offense while on probation, parole, or post-release supervision.

Within each level, the judge picks from three ranges: mitigated, presumptive, and aggravated. Presumptive is the default. The minimum sentence in months for a Class H felony works out as follows.³

Level I (0–1 points): Mitigated 4–5, Presumptive 5–6, Aggravated 6–8
Level II (2–5 points): Mitigated 4–6, Presumptive 6–8, Aggravated 8–10
Level III (6–9 points): Mitigated 6–8, Presumptive 8–10, Aggravated 10–12
Level IV (10–13 points): Mitigated 7–9, Presumptive 9–11, Aggravated 11–14
Level V (14–17 points): Mitigated 9–12, Presumptive 12–15, Aggravated 15–19
Level VI (18+ points): Mitigated 12–16, Presumptive 16–20, Aggravated 20–25

These are minimums. Each has a corresponding maximum that controls the actual release date. A 5-month minimum carries a 15-month maximum; a 20-month minimum carries a 33-month maximum.³

Can You Get Probation Instead of Prison

Possibly, depending on your record. North Carolina sorts punishment into three types, and only some are available at each level.⁴

Community punishment is supervised probation with no mandatory jail. For a Class H felony it is available only at Level I. Intermediate punishment is probation with added conditions like short jail stays, electronic monitoring, or substance abuse treatment, and it is available at Levels I through V. Active punishment is prison time, available at every level and the only option at Level VI.

A first-time offender at Level I has a real chance of avoiding prison. Someone at Level VI has none.

The 48-Hour Hold if the Victim Is a Partner

If the victim is a current or former spouse, someone you live or lived with as if married, or someone you are or were dating, N.C.G.S. § 15A-534.1 applies. You stay in custody for up to 48 hours after arrest before pretrial release conditions can be set, and only a judge, not a magistrate, has the authority to set them.⁵

The judge must review your criminal history before setting conditions and can impose requirements beyond a standard bond, including stay-away orders covering the victim’s home, school, and workplace, and alcohol abstention with continuous monitoring. If no judge acts within 48 hours, a magistrate may then step in. In practice, judges almost always act before the window closes.⁵

Defendants with no prior record who assume they will walk out the night of the arrest are often caught off guard by this hold.

Firearms: Immediate Loss and Lifetime Ban

The gun consequences come from two directions and are among the most overlooked parts of a strangulation case.

State Surrender Under a Protective Order

If the victim obtains a Chapter 50B domestic violence protective order, the court must order you to surrender all firearms, ammunition, and gun permits to the sheriff when it finds any of four triggering factors: use or threatened use of a deadly weapon, threats to seriously injure or kill the victim or a child, threats of suicide, or serious injuries inflicted on the victim or a child. A strangulation case often meets the first or the last. You have 24 hours from being served to turn everything over.⁶

Possessing a firearm while subject to a qualifying protective order is itself a Class H felony. So is failing to surrender or lying to the court about what you own.⁶

Federal Lifetime Ban After Conviction

A conviction for assault by strangulation triggers a permanent federal firearms ban under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), because it is a crime punishable by more than one year in prison. You cannot possess, purchase, ship, or receive any firearm or ammunition anywhere in the country. The ban cannot be waived by a state court and has no expiration.⁷

Violating the federal ban is a separate federal felony carrying up to 15 years. People who plead guilty to the state charge without working through this consequence sometimes find out years later that they cannot keep a hunting rifle or a handgun for home protection.

Defenses That Fit This Charge

Which defense fits depends on the facts, but a few come up repeatedly.

Self-defense is a complete defense when it applies. North Carolina recognizes the right to use reasonable, proportional force against an imminent threat. Once the defendant puts credible evidence of self-defense in the record, the prosecution has to disprove it beyond a reasonable doubt.

No physical injury attacks the second element directly. If the victim had no redness, no soreness, and no documented complaint of pain, the state may not be able to prove hurt, damage, or loss to the body.

Accidental contact attacks intent. If hands landed on the throat during a fall or a struggle rather than through a deliberate act, the charge fails. The prosecution’s evidence about hand positioning and duration of contact usually decides this one.

Insufficient evidence of strangulation attacks the first element. Brief contact with the neck that did not restrict airway or circulation is not strangulation under the statute.

Winning on the strangulation charge does not always mean walking free. A jury that acquits on strangulation can still convict on a lesser included offense like simple assault if the evidence supports it.

Consequences Beyond Sentencing

A Class H felony conviction follows you well past the prison or probation term.

Professional licensing boards across North Carolina review felony convictions when deciding whether to grant, renew, or revoke licenses. Nursing, teaching, law enforcement, and real estate all involve background checks, and a violent felony rarely helps. Each board applies its own standards.

Non-citizens face the sharpest collateral risk. A domestic violence felony conviction can make a person deportable, and classification as a crime of violence can result in mandatory immigration detention without bond. A plea that looks favorable in criminal court can be devastating on the immigration side, so any non-citizen facing this charge should consult an immigration attorney before accepting a deal.

1
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina General Statutes 14-32.4 – Assault Inflicting Serious Bodily Injury; Strangulation; Penalties
2
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 15A-1340.14 – Prior Record Level for Felony Sentencing
3
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina General Statutes 15A-1340.17 – Punishment Limits for Each Class of Offense and Prior Record Level
4
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina General Statutes Chapter 15A Article 81B – Structured Sentencing of Persons Convicted of Crimes
5
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 15A-534.1 – Crimes of Domestic Violence; Bail and Pretrial Release
6
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 50B-3.1 – Surrender and Disposal of Firearms; Violations; Exemptions
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts