Assault and injury
Verified 02 May 2023 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)
Were you intentionally beaten or accidentally injured by someone?
You can file a complaint to ensure that the perpetrator of the violence is punished both criminally and civilly.
The criminal penalty is a fine or imprisonment, while the civil penalty is an obligation to make good the damage.
The extent of the penalties depends on the voluntary or involuntary nature of the acts, the seriousness of the injuries, the age and personality of the victim.
Self-inflicted injuries
Voluntary injuries still called intentional assault and battery are violence intentionally inflicted on a person.
This means that the perpetrator deliberately sought to harm his victim, even if the act was not premeditated.
Violence can be physical (punching, kicking...) or psychological (threats, harassment...).
Psychological violence is punished in the same way as physical violence.
If you are a victim of willful abuse, you can complain to request that the perpetrator be sentenced to a criminal offense (fine or prison sentence).
Form of complaint
On the spot
The complaint may be filed with the police, the gendarmerie or the public prosecutor.
The victim of violence can file a complaint by going to a police station or a gendarme brigade.
The police and gendarmerie are obliged to take the complaint and forward it to the public prosecutor.
FYI
it is preferable to file a complaint with the police or the police where the incident occurred, but this is not mandatory.
By mail
Victims of violence can also lodge complaints directly with the public prosecutor.
To do this, you must send a letter to the court of the place of the offense or court of the domicile of the accused person of the offenseinfringement.
Who shall I contact
The mail shall specify the following:
- Civil status and full contact details of the complainant (address and telephone number)
- Detailed account of the facts, date and place of the offense
- Name of the person suspected of being the author (otherwise, complaint against X)
- Names and addresses of any witnesses to the offense
- Description and provisional or definitive estimate of the damage
- Evidence: medical certificates, work stoppages, miscellaneous invoices, findings...
- Declaration of formation of civil party (optional)
The following mail template can be used:
File a complaint with the public prosecutor
The complaint may be sent by simple letter, by follow-up letter or by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt.
The letter of the complaint can also be filed at the reception of the court.
In all cases, a receipt is issued as soon as the Office of the Public Prosecutor has registered the complaint.
The presence of a lawyer is not mandatory for the lodging of a complaint and throughout the procedure until the trial before the correctional court.
Time limit for filing a complaint
The complaint must be filed within a certain period of time, otherwise it is no longer taken into account.
This is called the limitation period.
The limitation period for a complaint concerning acts of willful violence varies according to the seriousness of the acts.
If the facts constitute a contravention, the complaint must be lodged within 1 year from the date on which they occurred.
If the facts constitute a offense, the complaint must be lodged within 6 years from the date of the facts.
If the facts constitute a crime, the complaint must be lodged within 20 years from the date of the facts.
During the investigation phase
If you file a complaint, the public prosecutor will look into the case and decide to open an investigation or close the case.
Even if you don't file a complaint, the prosecutor can decide to examine the case himself and open an investigation or close the case without further action.
The conduct of the proceedings depends on the public prosecutor.
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The prosecutor opens an investigation
The prosecutor decides at the end of his investigation to refer the case to the correctional court or to close the case.
Referral to the Correctional Court
The case will be heard by the correctional court.
No follow-up ranking
That's the end of the procedure, unless you wear civil party claim.
In this case, an investigative judge will be seized and will open an investigation.
The prosecutor is filing directly without further action
That's the end of the procedure, unless you wear civil party claim.
To do this, you have to wait 3 months without hearing from you after the date of your complaint.
The filing of a complaint with the formation of a civil party entails the appointment of an investigative judge who will open an investigation.
During the judgment phase
If the case is referred to the correctional court, that court will try the person accused of the facts.
The trial before the correctional court is used primarily to establish the guilt or innocence of the accused.
But you can also ask the correctional court to order the accused to compensate you for the harm caused to you by the violence.
In this case, you must to bring you a civil party before the correctional court.
In order to convict the accused, both criminally and civilly, the correctional court must rely on evidence.
Evidence for criminal proceedings
The evidence that can be used to establish the guilt of the accused is as follows:
- Testimony from those who attended the scene
- Photos or videos of the scene or injuries
- Medical certificate indicating the nature and severity of injuries
- Scientific identifiers (fingerprints, DNA traces, etc.)
- Geolocation elements for informing the presence of people at a location
- Telephone or electronic messages
Evidence for civil proceedings
In order to be compensated, you have to prove that you have suffered harm.
To prove this, you can provide the following:
- Photos or videos of injuries and damaged objects
- Medical certificate describing injuries and length of incapacity for work
- Finding of the Commissioner of Justice (former bailiff)
- Damaged Item Repair Quote
- Purchase or repair invoices for damaged items
Claim for compensation
If the accused is found guilty, the correctional court may order the accused to pay you damages if you have party to civil proceedings.
But if you haven't filed a civil suit, the court can't give you damages.
The same is true if you have filed a civil suit before the correctional court and you have not communicated the amount of your harm.
In both cases, you can seek compensation from the court based on the judgment of the correctional court.
Payment of compensation
The person found guilty of involuntary bodily harm must compensate you under the conditions laid down in the decision of the correctional or judicial court.
If the convicted person cannot fully compensate you, you can seize the Commission for the Compensation of Victims of Crime (Civi).
If Civi cannot compensate you, you must apply to the Service d'aide au recovery des victims d'offenses (Sarvi).
The penalties applicable to perpetrators of willful violence vary depending on whether you are a minor or an adult.
Penalties if the victim is of age
Principal penalty
The severity of the penalties depends on the extent of the injuries you have sustained:
Damage suffered by the victim | Penalty incurred |
|---|---|
No injuries or injuries | €750 fine |
Total incapacity for work (ITT) of up to 8 days | €1,500 of fine (€3,000 in case of recurrence) |
ITT over 8 days | 3 years imprisonment and €45,000 fine |
Mutilation or permanent disability | 10 years imprisonment and €150,000 fine |
Death (without intention of giving it) | 15 years of Imprisonment |
Please note
if the violence was carried out with the aim of killing, then theinfringement it is murder or attempted murder.
In the cases provided for by law, penalties may be increased where the intentional violence was committed with one or more persons aggravating circumstances.
Thus, for acts of intentional violence committed with an aggravating circumstance, except in cases of mutilation or permanent infirmity and death, the penalty may be up to 7 years imprisonment and €100,000 fine.
The judge may even consider several aggravating circumstances if the willful violence resulted in temporary incapacity for work, regardless of how long it lasted.
Example :
- Acts committed with racist or homophobic intent (e.g. because of the foreign origin of the sexual orientation of the victim)
- Violence against a spouse, cohabiting partner, or partner of Civil partnerships (domestic violence)
- Acts committed in the presence of a minor
- Acts committed against a victim who is vulnerable because of his age or health
- Acts committed in a means of transport
- Acts committed under the influence of alcohol or drugs
- Violence in a school
- Violence with a weapon
- Violence against a police officer or gendarme
- Violence by multiple perpetrators or accomplices
Please note
violence committed in the context of arrest or arrest by law enforcement is a serious offense specific, that of the rebellion.
Additional penalty
The author is also at risk of additional penalties, which may be in addition to the main penalty.
Example :
- Prohibition of possession or carrying a weapon
- Confiscation of the object used to commit the offense
- Practicing (citizenship, awareness of the dangers of drug use, parental responsibility)
- Prohibition on approaching the family home
- Revocation of civil rights
- Revocation of parental authority
Please note
the perpetrator of the violence shall not be punished if he has acted in a state of self-defense.
Penalties if the victim is a minor
The penalty for intentional violence against a minor victim varies according to the following:
- Age of minor
- Seriousness of the facts
- Frequency of events
- Relationship between the perpetrator and the minor
Violence against a child under 15
Violence resulting in incapacity for work of up to 8 days
Violence by third parties
The penalty is 3 years imprisonment and €45,000 of fine.
Violence by parents
The penalty is 5 years imprisonment and €75,000 a fine where the acts are committed by a parent or by a person who has authority over the minor (e.g. a step-parent).
Usual violence
In case of habitual violence, the penalty may be up to 5 years' imprisonment and €75,000 of fine.
Violence resulting in incapacity to work for more than 8 days
Violence by third parties
The penalty is 5 years imprisonment and €75,000 of fine.
Violence by parents
The penalty is 10 years imprisonment and €150,000 a fine where the acts are committed by a parent or by a person who has authority over the minor (e.g. a step-parent).
Usual violence
In case of habitual violence, the penalty may be up to 10 years' imprisonment and €150,000 of fine.
Violence resulting in mutilation or permanent disability
Violence by third parties
Violence resulting in mutilation or permanent disability is punishable by 15 years of criminal imprisonment.
Violence by parents
The penalty is 20 years' imprisonment if the offense is committed by a parent or by a person having authority over the minor (e.g. a step-parent).
Usual violence
In case of habitual violence, the penalty may be up to 20 years criminal imprisonment.
Violence leading to death without intent
Violence by third parties
The penalty is 20 years' imprisonment.
Violence by parents
The penalty is 30 years' imprisonment if the offense is committed by a parent or by a person who has authority over the minor.
Usual violence
In case of habitual violence having caused death, the penalty may be up to 30 years criminal imprisonment.
Violence against a child over 15
Violence resulting in incapacity for work of up to 8 days
Violence by a third party
The penalty is a fine of €750 if there is no temporary incapacity for work, and €1,500 if there is a temporary incapacity for work.
Violence by a person with authority over the child
The penalty is 3 years imprisonment and €45,000 of fine.
Usual violence
In case of habitual violence, the penalty may be up to 5 years' imprisonment and €75,000 of fine.
Violence resulting in incapacity to work for more than 8 days
Violence by a third party
The penalty is 3 years imprisonment and €45,000 of fine.
Violence by a person with authority over the child
The penalty is 5 years imprisonment and €75,000 of fine.
Usual violence
In case of habitual violence, the penalty may be up to 10 years' imprisonment and €150,000 of fine.
Violence resulting in mutilation or permanent disability
Violence by a third party
The penalty is 10 years imprisonment and €150,000 of fine.
Violence by a person with authority over the child
The sentence is 15 years criminal imprisonment.
Usual violence
In case of habitual violence, the penalty may be up to 20 years criminal imprisonment.
Violence leading to death without intent
Violence by a third party
The sentence is 15 years criminal imprisonment.
Violence by a person with authority over the child
The sentence is 20 years of criminal imprisonment.
Usual violence
In case of habitual violence having caused death, the penalty may be up to 30 years criminal imprisonment.
Additional penalties
The perpetrator of the violence also risks additional penalties, which may be in addition to the main penalty.
Involuntary injuries
Involuntary injuries, also known as unintentional bodily injury, are unintentional injuries to a person.
In this case, the infringements you have suffered are the result of the author's clumsiness, negligence, recklessness, inattention or failure to comply with a legal obligation of safety.
Example :
- A hiker throws a cigarette butt and causes a forest fire that injures other hikers.
- A car or motorcycle driver violates speed limits and knocks down a passerby.
- An employer does not inform his employee that he has to put a helmet on the construction site, and the employee has an accident.
- A driver takes the wheel after drinking alcohol and/or using narcotics and causes an accident with injured people.
The damage that has been caused to you may be an injury, an illness.
When unintentional bodily harm has resulted in the death of the victim, we talk manslaughter,
On the spot
The complaint may be filed with the police, the gendarmerie or the public prosecutor.
The victim of violence can file a complaint by going to a police station or a gendarme brigade.
The police and gendarmerie are obliged to take the complaint and forward it to the public prosecutor.
FYI
it is preferable to file a complaint with the police or the police where the incident occurred, but this is not mandatory.
By mail
Victims of violence can also lodge complaints directly with the public prosecutor.
To do this, you must send a letter to the court of the place of the offense or court of the domicile of the accused person of the offenseinfringement.
Who shall I contact
The mail shall specify the following:
- Civil status and full contact details of the complainant (address and telephone number)
- Detailed account of the facts, date and place of the offense
- Name of the person suspected of being the author (otherwise, complaint against X)
- Names and addresses of any witnesses to the offense
- Description and provisional or definitive estimate of the damage
- Evidence: medical certificates, work stoppages, miscellaneous invoices, findings...
- Declaration of formation of civil party (optional)
The following mail template can be used:
File a complaint with the public prosecutor
The complaint may be sent by simple letter, by follow-up letter or by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt.
The letter of the complaint can also be filed at the reception of the court.
In all cases, a receipt is issued as soon as the Office of the Public Prosecutor has registered the complaint.
The presence of a lawyer is not mandatory for the lodging of a complaint and throughout the procedure until the trial before the correctional court.
If you are a victim of willful abuse, you can complain to request that the perpetrator be sentenced to a criminal offense (fine or prison sentence).
Form of complaint
On the spot
The complaint may be filed with the police, the gendarmerie or the public prosecutor.
The victim of violence can file a complaint by going to a police station or a gendarme brigade.
The police and gendarmerie are obliged to take the complaint and forward it to the public prosecutor.
FYI
it is preferable to file a complaint with the police or the police where the incident occurred, but this is not mandatory.
By mail
Victims of violence can also lodge complaints directly with the public prosecutor.
To do this, you must send a letter to the court of the place of the offense or court of the domicile of the accused person of the offenseinfringement.
Who shall I contact
The mail shall specify the following:
- Civil status and full contact details of the complainant (address and telephone number)
- Detailed account of the facts, date and place of the offense
- Name of the person suspected of being the author (otherwise, complaint against X)
- Names and addresses of any witnesses to the offense
- Description and provisional or definitive estimate of the damage
- Evidence: medical certificates, work stoppages, miscellaneous invoices, findings...
- Declaration of formation of civil party (optional)
The following mail template can be used:
File a complaint with the public prosecutor
The complaint may be sent by simple letter, by follow-up letter or by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt.
The letter of the complaint can also be filed at the reception of the court.
In all cases, a receipt is issued as soon as the Office of the Public Prosecutor has registered the complaint.
The presence of a lawyer is not mandatory for the lodging of a complaint and throughout the procedure until the trial before the correctional court.
Time limit for filing a complaint
The complaint must be filed within a certain period of time, otherwise it is no longer taken into account.
This is called the limitation period.
The limitation period for a complaint concerning acts of willful violence varies according to the seriousness of these acts.
If the facts constitute a contravention, the complaint must be lodged within 1 year from the date on which they occurred.
If the facts constitute a offense, the complaint must be lodged within 6 years from the date on which they occurred.
If the facts constitute a crime, the complaint must be lodged within 20 yearss from the date they occurred.
During the investigation phase
If you file a complaint, the public prosecutor will examine the case and decide to open an investigation or to close the case without further action.
Even if you don't file a complaint, the prosecutor can look into the case and decide to open an investigation or close the case.
The conduct of the proceedings depends on the public prosecutor.
The prosecutor opens an investigation
The prosecutor decides at the end of his investigation to refer the case to the correctional court or to close the case.
Referral to the Correctional Court
The case will be heard by the correctional court.
No follow-up ranking
That's the end of the procedure, unless you wear civil party claim.
In this case, an investigative judge will be seized and will open an investigation.
The prosecutor is filing the case directly without further action
That's the end of the procedure, unless you wear civil party claim.
To do this, you have to wait 3 months no news after the date of his complaint.
The filing of a complaint with the formation of a civil party entails the appointment of an investigative judge who will open an investigation.
During the judgment phase
If the case is referred to the correctional court, that court will try the person accused of the violence.
The trial before the correctional court is used primarily to establish the guilt or innocence of the accused.
But you can also ask the correctional court to order the accused to compensate you for the harm caused to you by the violence.
In this case, you must to be a civil party before the correctional court.
In order to convict the accused, both criminally and civilly, the correctional court must rely on evidence.
Evidence for criminal proceedings
The evidence that can be used to establish the guilt of the accused is as follows:
- Testimony from those who attended the scene
- Photos or videos of the scene or injuries
- Medical certificate indicating the nature and severity of injuries
- Scientific identifiers (fingerprints, DNA traces, etc.)
- Geolocation elements for informing the presence of people at a location
- Telephone or electronic messages
Evidence for civil proceedings
In order to be compensated, you have to prove that you have suffered harm.
To prove this, you can provide one of the following:
- Photos or videos of injuries and damaged objects
- Medical certificate describing injuries and length of incapacity for work
- Finding of the Commissioner of Justice (former bailiff)
- Damaged Item Repair Quote
- Purchase or repair invoices for damaged items
Claim for compensation
If the accused is found guilty, the correctional court may order the accused to pay you damages if you have party to civil proceedings.
But if you haven't filed a civil suit, the court can't give you damages.
The same is true if you have filed a civil suit before the correctional court, but without disclosing the amount of its harm.
In both cases, you can seek compensation from the court based on the judgment of the correctional court.
If the perpetrator is found guilty by the correctional court and you have not brought a civil suit or communicated the amount of your damage, the court cannot order him to pay you damages damages.
In this case, you must seek compensation from the civil judge.
Payment of compensation
The person found guilty of involuntary bodily harm must compensate you under the conditions laid down in the decision of the correctional or judicial court.
If the convicted person cannot compensate you or cannot fully compensate you, you can seize the Commission for the Compensation of Victims of Crime (Civi).
If the CIVI cannot compensate you, you must apply to the Service d'Aide au Recovery des Victimes d'Infractions (SARVI).
The following people may be responsible for unintentional bodily harm:
- Person who directly caused the injury
- Owner of the dog that injured the victim or the owner of the dog at the time of the incident
- Owner of an object that caused the injury (for example, if a poorly maintained wall collapses and injures you)
- Legal person (if one of its representatives has caused the infringements in the course of its usual work)
Example :
In case of food poisoning, a company can be pursued because of a lack of control of the workers.
Penalties depend on the severity of the harm, the nature and extent of the fault.
A person who commits a simple recklessness will be less severely punished than a person who willfully fails to comply with a safety rule (the manifest and deliberate violation of a statutory safety obligation).
In the cases provided for by law, the penalties may be more severe where the acts were committed in certain circumstances, known as aggravating circumstances.
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There is no aggravating circumstance
The penalties shall be increased according to the severity of the damage caused to the victim:
Damage suffered by the victim | Penalty incurred |
|---|---|
No injuries or injuries | €150 fine |
Total incapacity for work (ITT) less than or equal to 3 months | €1,500 of fine (€3,000 in case of recurrence) |
ITT over 3 months | 2 years in prison and €30,000 fine |
Death (manslaughter) | 3 years in prison and €45,000 fine |
The court may also sentence the person convicted of involuntary injury to additional penalties in relation to the acts committed.
Example :
- Confiscation of the weapon used to commit the violence: knife, gun...
- Prohibition of carrying a weapon
- Confiscation of vehicle that injured road users
- Obligation to attend awareness-raising courses (use of stup)
There are one or more aggravating circumstances
Deliberate breach of a particular duty of security laid down by law
Damage suffered by the victim | Penalty incurred |
|---|---|
No injuries or injuries | €1,500 of fine (€3,000 in case of recurrence) |
Total incapacity for work (ITT) of less than 3 months | 1 year in prison and €15,000 fine |
ITT over 3 months | 3 years in prison and €45,000 fine |
Death (manslaughter) | 5 years in prison and €75,000 fine |
Please note
the author is also at risk of additional penalties.
Offense committed by the driver of a land motor vehicle
Damage suffered by the victim | Penalty incurred |
|---|---|
No injuries or injuries | €150 fine |
Total incapacity for work (ITT) of less than 3 months | 2 years in prison and €30,000 fine |
ITT over 3 months | 3 years in prison and €45,000 fine |
Death (manslaughter) | 5 years in prison and €75,000 fine |
Specific aggravating circumstances may apply:
- Impaired driving
- Drug-impaired driving
- Driving without a driving license
- Excess speed over 50 km/h
- Hit and Run
- Deliberate violation of the law
Please note
the author is also at risk of additional penalties like the cancelation of the driver's license.
Injuries from Dog Assault
Damage suffered by the victim | Penalty incurred |
|---|---|
No injuries or injuries | €150 fine |
Total incapacity for work (ITT) of less than 3 months | 2 years imprisonment and €30,000 fine |
ITT over 3 months | 3 years imprisonment and €45,000 fine |
Death (manslaughter) | 5 years imprisonment and €75,000 fine |
Specific aggravating circumstances may apply:
- Unlawful detention of a dangerous dog
- Drunkenness of dog owner during incident
- Driving without a driving license
- Non-vaccination of dogs against rabies
- Dog abuse
Please note
the author is also at risk of additional penalties like confiscating the dog.
Who can help me?
Find who can answer your questions in your region
116 006 - Victim Assistance Number
Listen, inform and advise victims of crime and their families.
By telephone
116,006
Free call
Open 7 days a week from 9am to 7pm
The service can also be accessed by calling the +33 (0)1 80 52 33 76 (Normal pricing number).
By email
victimes@france-victimes.fr
Sentences in cases of willful violence
Sentences in cases of involuntary violence
Sentences for non-injurious involuntary violence
Sentences for light intentional violence
Sentences for willful violence with ITT of more than 8 days
FAQ
Service-Public.fr
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Ministry of Justice
Guarantee Fund for Victims of Terrorism and Other Crimes
Ministry of Justice