Penal Code 273.5 PC: Penalties, Defenses & Record Cleanup

California Penal Code section 273.5 makes it a crime to willfully inflict physical injury on a spouse, former spouse, cohabitant, dating partner, fiancé, or the parent of your child. Prosecutors can file it as a misdemeanor or a felony, and a conviction can bring up to four years in state prison, a mandatory year-long batterer’s treatment program, a protective order lasting up to a decade, and a permanent loss of firearm rights under both state and federal law.

What the Prosecution Has to Prove

Three elements have to line up for a conviction. The prosecution must show that you deliberately used physical force against an intimate partner, that the partner falls within one of the protected relationships listed in the statute, and that the force caused a “traumatic condition.”¹ Willful means you acted on purpose. It does not mean you intended to break the law or intended to hurt anyone.

A traumatic condition is any wound or bodily injury caused by physical force. The statute expressly includes injuries from strangulation or suffocation, which it defines as applying pressure to the throat or neck in a way that interferes with breathing or blood circulation.¹ The injury does not have to be severe. Bruises, scrapes, swelling, sprains, concussions, and internal injuries all qualify. Prosecutors usually build the injury element on medical records, photographs, and testimony describing pain.

The injury must be a natural and probable result of the force used. If something unrelated to your conduct caused the harm, that link breaks and the charge fails.

Who Counts as a Protected Partner

PC 273.5 only reaches four categories of relationships:¹

A current or former spouse.
A current or former cohabitant. California courts look at factors like shared finances, joint use of property, and how long the relationship lasted. You do not need to have held yourselves out as married.
A current or former fiancé or dating partner.
The parent of the defendant’s child, whether or not the two ever lived together or were romantically involved.

If the alleged victim is outside these categories, the case cannot proceed under PC 273.5. Prosecutors in that situation would file under a general battery statute with different penalties.

How It Differs From Domestic Battery

PC 273.5 is often confused with Penal Code 243(e)(1), the domestic battery statute. The line between them is injury. PC 273.5 requires a traumatic condition; PC 243(e)(1) does not, and an unwanted touching is enough to charge it.²

That distinction drives the stakes. PC 243(e)(1) is always a misdemeanor with up to one year in county jail and a maximum $2,000 fine.² PC 273.5 is a wobbler that can be charged as a felony carrying state prison time. When there is documented injury, prosecutors typically go with 273.5.

Penalties for a First Offense

Because PC 273.5 is a wobbler, the sentence depends on how the prosecutor files it. A misdemeanor conviction carries up to one year in county jail, a fine of up to $6,000, or both. A felony conviction carries two, three, or four years in state prison, the same $6,000 maximum fine, or both.¹ Charging generally turns on the severity of the injury, the circumstances of the incident, and the defendant’s criminal history.

Prior Conviction Enhancement

Penalties climb when the defendant has a qualifying prior conviction within the preceding seven years. If the prior was for PC 273.5, assault with a deadly weapon, battery causing serious injury, or certain other violent offenses, the new conviction carries two, four, or five years in state prison and a fine of up to $10,000.¹ If the prior was misdemeanor domestic battery under PC 243(e)(1), the prison range stays at two, three, or four years, but the fine still rises to $10,000.

Great Bodily Injury Enhancement

When the victim suffers significant or substantial injury, the prosecution can add a great bodily injury enhancement on top of the base sentence. In a domestic violence case, that adds three, four, or five additional consecutive years in state prison.³ A felony first offense with the enhancement could reach nine years. Broken bones, injuries requiring surgery, and serious concussions are the kinds of harm that typically trigger it. The judge stacks the GBI time onto the base sentence rather than running it concurrently.

Probation Conditions if the Court Grants It

Courts often grant probation instead of the maximum jail or prison term, but California law loads that probation with mandatory terms. The minimum probation period is 36 months.⁴

The centerpiece is a batterer’s treatment program lasting at least one year. Sessions run weekly, at least two hours each, and you must attend consecutively with no more than three excused absences across the whole program. You have to complete the program within 18 months and file proof of enrollment with the court within 30 days of conviction.⁴ Sessions typically cost $45 to $50, paid out of pocket. Failing to complete the program is treated as a probation violation and usually means jail.

Money obligations are built in as well. You must pay at least $500 into a state domestic violence fund, though a judge can reduce or waive the fee after a hearing if you cannot afford it. The court can also order community service, require payments of up to $5,000 to a domestic violence shelter program, or order reimbursement to the victim for expenses caused by the offense.⁴

Protective Orders

Judges routinely issue a criminal protective order at the defendant’s first court appearance. The order can be a full no-contact order barring any communication or physical proximity, or a peaceful-contact order allowing limited interaction, usually around shared children. The court picks the type based on the circumstances.⁵

On conviction, the court can issue a protective order lasting up to 10 years, whether the sentence involves prison, jail, or probation.⁵ Violating any term leads to immediate arrest and separate charges. Even after an expungement under PC 1203.4, an unexpired protective order stays in force.⁶

Loss of Firearm Rights

A PC 273.5 conviction triggers gun bans under both California and federal law, and these are among the longest-lasting consequences of the case.

Under California law, any felony conviction produces a lifetime ban on owning or possessing firearms. For misdemeanor PC 273.5 convictions on or after January 1, 2019, the ban is also permanent; the statute strips out the 10-year time limit that applies to most other misdemeanors.⁷ Violating the ban is itself a crime, punishable by up to a year in county jail, state prison time, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

Federal law adds a separate prohibition. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9), anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence cannot ship, transport, or possess any firearm or ammunition.⁸ The federal ban has no expiration and no exception for law enforcement or military personnel. A police officer or service member with a qualifying conviction cannot legally carry a firearm, even on duty.⁹

Immigration Consequences

For non-citizens, a PC 273.5 conviction can be devastating. Federal immigration law treats domestic violence as a deportable offense. Under 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(E), any non-citizen convicted after admission of a “crime of domestic violence” is subject to removal.⁸ The statute defines that phrase to cover any crime of violence against a current or former spouse, cohabitant, co-parent, or someone in a similar domestic relationship. PC 273.5 fits squarely inside that definition.

The fallout goes beyond deportation risk. A conviction can also bar non-citizens from cancellation of removal and adjustment of status. If a sentence of a year or more is imposed on a single count, the conviction may be classified as an aggravated felony under federal immigration law, which eliminates nearly every avenue for staying in the country. If you are a non-citizen facing a 273.5 charge, consult an immigration attorney alongside your criminal defense lawyer, because plea decisions that look routine in criminal court can be immigration-fatal.

Common Defenses

California’s standard jury instruction for PC 273.5 explicitly identifies self-defense as an issue the jury must consider, and the prosecution must prove you did not act in self-defense.¹⁰ To use the defense, you generally need evidence that you reasonably believed you were in danger of physical harm, that you used a proportionate amount of force, and that you were not the initial aggressor.

False accusations are another line of defense. Custody battles, divorces, and personal grudges all motivate exaggerated or fabricated allegations. Defense counsel typically challenge these accusations by pointing to inconsistencies between the accuser’s account and the physical or documentary evidence. The prosecution carries the burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt, and contradictions in the record can prevent them from meeting it.

A third defense goes at the injury element directly. Because PC 273.5 requires a traumatic condition, the defense can argue that no injury actually resulted, or that the injury came from another source. If the prosecution cannot connect the injury to the defendant’s use of force, the 273.5 charge fails. This defense sometimes ends in a reduction to PC 243(e)(1), where no injury is required.

Cleaning Up the Record

After finishing probation, you can petition the court under Penal Code 1203.4 to dismiss your 273.5 conviction. If granted, the court withdraws your plea, enters a not-guilty plea, and dismisses the case. This relief removes many of the disabilities of a conviction, including some employment barriers.⁶

Know the limits. A 1203.4 dismissal does not lift the federal firearm prohibition under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9).⁹ It does not terminate any unexpired protective order under PC 136.2.⁶ And the conviction still counts as a prior offense for sentencing if you pick up a new domestic violence case within the seven-year lookback. The dismissal is real relief, but federal agencies and licensing boards still see the underlying record.

1
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 273.5
2
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 243
3
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 12022.7
4
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.097
5
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code PEN 136.2
6
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.4
7
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 29805
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1227 – Deportable Aliens
9
United States Department of Justice. Restrictions on the Possession of Firearms by Individuals Convicted of a Misdemeanor Crime of Domestic Violence
10
Justia. CALCRIM No. 840 – Inflicting Injury on Spouse, Cohabitant, or Fellow Parent