What Counts as Domestic Abuse?

Examples of domestic abuse include hitting, threats, sexual pressure, insults, and controlling behavior like monitoring a partner’s phone or money. Physical harm is only one form. Emotional, sexual, financial, and coercive behaviors can also be abuse, even when no injury is visible.

This page gives common examples, explains a few Florida legal terms, and covers what to do if you are facing an accusation. Whether any conduct is a crime depends on the facts and applicable law. Patrick David Wilson, a Miami criminal defense attorney, wrote this page for general information.

What domestic abuse means in plain terms

Domestic abuse is a set of behaviors one person uses to control someone close to them. It is not limited to hitting. A single incident and an ongoing pattern can both matter, and context shapes how a behavior is understood.

Florida’s criminal law uses the term “domestic violence” for specific offenses. Under Fla. Stat. § 741.28, that term covers acts such as assault, battery, sexual battery, stalking, and kidnapping when they involve a family or household member.

That group includes spouses, former spouses, people related by blood or marriage, and parents of a child in common. It also includes people who live or have lived together as a family. Except for parents of a child in common, those people must currently live or have lived in the same single dwelling unit.

Physical abuse examples

Physical abuse is any act that hurts, or tries to hurt, a person’s body. Common examples include:

• Hitting, slapping, punching, or kicking.
• Pushing, shoving, grabbing, or pinning someone down.
• Throwing objects at a person or using an object to threaten them.
• Blocking a doorway or car door to keep someone from leaving.
• Withholding medical care after an injury, or taking a phone to stop a call for help.

Strangulation deserves special attention. Under Fla. Stat. § 784.041, domestic battery by strangulation involves knowingly and intentionally, against the will of another, impeding the normal breathing or circulation of the blood of a family or household member or a person in a dating relationship, and whether that applies depends on the facts and applicable law. That can happen by pressing the throat or neck, or by blocking the nose or mouth, when it creates a risk of or causes great bodily harm. The statute classifies this as a third-degree felony, and any charge depends on the facts.

Under Fla. Stat. § 784.03, battery includes actually and intentionally touching or striking another person against their will. Battery is generally a first-degree misdemeanor, but the statute treats some repeat cases as felonies.

Sexual abuse examples

Sexual abuse is sexual contact a partner forces, pressures, or obtains without real consent. Florida law defines consent as intelligent, knowing, and voluntary, and it does not include coerced submission.

Examples include:

• Forcing sexual contact or intercourse.
• Pressuring a partner into sex after they have said no.
• Sexual contact while a partner is asleep, unconscious, or intoxicated and cannot communicate unwillingness.
• Using threats to force a partner into sexual acts.
• Interfering with birth control, or pressuring a partner to become pregnant against their wishes.

Lack of physical resistance is not the same as consent. Under Fla. Stat. § 794.011, consent “shall not be deemed or construed to mean the failure by the alleged victim to offer physical resistance.” Whether any act is sexual battery depends on the facts and the statute’s full definitions. Read the complete statute for exact wording.

Emotional and verbal abuse examples

Emotional abuse is a pattern of words and actions that wears down a person’s sense of self. It often leaves no visible mark. It can still be part of a larger pattern of control.

Examples include:

• Insults, name-calling, and public or private humiliation.
• Constant criticism of a partner’s looks, intelligence, parenting, or work.
• Threats to harm the person, their children, family members, or pets.
• Gaslighting, which means denying real events or insisting the person is remembering wrong, so they doubt themselves.
• Silent treatment, blame, and guilt used to force compliance.

Whether specific words or actions are a crime depends on the facts and applicable law.

Coercive control, isolation, stalking, and financial abuse examples

Coercive control is a pattern of tactics that limits a person’s freedom, even without physical contact. Examples include:

• Demanding passwords or checking phone messages, location, email, or social media.
• Cutting a person off from friends, family, or coworkers.
• Controlling money, such as limiting account access, blocking work, or taking earnings.
• Following, repeatedly contacting, or showing up uninvited at a person’s home, work, or school.
• Destroying property or harming a pet to frighten or control someone.

Stalking is a separate offense in Florida. Under Fla. Stat. § 784.048, stalking involves a person who willfully, maliciously, and repeatedly follows, harasses, or cyberstalks another person, and the statute sets out several forms of aggravated stalking. Whether a credible threat is required depends on which form is charged and on the facts and applicable law. A credible threat can be verbal or nonverbal, including electronic communication, or implied by a pattern of conduct. It must place the target in reasonable fear for their own safety or that of family members or close associates, and it must be made with the apparent ability to carry it out. The statute classifies aggravated stalking as a third-degree felony, depending on the facts.

Common signs of abuse and what they may indicate

Signs of abuse can be visible, behavioral, or both. None of them proves abuse alone, so look for patterns over time and in context.

Visible signs may include unexplained injuries, repeated “accidents,” or clothing that seems meant to hide marks. Behavioral signs can include fear of a partner, anxiety about calls or texts, sudden withdrawal, or losing contact with friends.

For a young person, watch for changes in mood, grades, sleep, or sudden secrecy. These changes have many possible causes, such as stress, illness, or a breakup. They should be assessed in context.

Signs alone do not establish that abuse happened. Treat them as reasons to ask questions and listen, not as proof. Whether a court decides what occurred depends on the facts and applicable law.

If you are facing a domestic violence accusation

An accusation of domestic violence can be a serious matter. You may have been arrested, served with a protective order, or told about a family member’s complaint. Whether any charge applies, and what follows, depends on the facts and applicable law.

Protective orders are a civil process. Under Fla. Stat. § 741.30, a person who is a victim, or who has reasonable cause to believe they are in imminent danger, may file a verified petition for an injunction in circuit court. If a violation of an injunction is alleged and there has not been an arrest, Fla. Stat. § 741.31 may govern how an affidavit is prepared, and a 30-working-day period for the state attorney to decide on next steps may apply, depending on the facts and applicable law.

A firearm restriction may also apply. Under Fla. Stat. § 790.233, possessing a firearm or ammunition can be prohibited while a final injunction is in force. Whether it applies depends on the specific order and facts.

The Florida Courts legal outline notes that a court may impose a no-contact order as a pretrial-release condition. Read your own order closely, because its terms depend on that order.

Frequently asked questions