Also known as: bodily injuries · physical injury
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
Physical harm consisting of pain, illness, or impairment of physical condition.
Brendan Burns grabs Benito Benitez's wallet on a sidewalk. When Benito resists by holding tight, Brendan punches him in the jaw, breaking a tooth and causing swelling. The blow allows Brendan to pry the wallet free and flee.
Brianna Burke demands cash from Byron Bishop outside a store. She brandishes a knife and states she will stab him immediately unless he complies. Byron hands over his money while fearing serious harm from the weapon.
Boubacar Bah suffers a broken leg after Bright Path Foods' delivery truck strikes him. Paramedics apply a splint that further tears ligaments during transport. The trucking company faces liability for both the initial fracture and the worsened condition.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Bharat Bhatia strikes Boreal Energy's security guard repeatedly in the head with a metal pipe during a confrontation. The guard suffers a skull fracture and internal bleeding. The blows demonstrate deliberate targeting of a vulnerable area.
Beacon Bank employee Benito Benitez swings a heavy ledger at Brendan Burns during an argument. The ledger strikes Burns's arm, fracturing the bone. The swing occurs without regard for the obvious risk of injury from the dense object.
Brianna Burke stabs Byron Bishop in the torso with a screwdriver during a dispute. The wound penetrates deeply and requires surgery. The choice of the pointed tool supports an inference of intent to cause severe harm.
Bodily injury means physical pain, illness, or any impairment of physical condition. This definition applies across homicide, assault, and robbery provisions. It distinguishes ordinary harm from the higher threshold of serious bodily injury.
Supporting sources
Infliction of serious bodily injury during a theft elevates robbery to first-degree under the Model Penal Code. The injury must occur in the course of committing the theft.
No. Bodily injury requires physical pain, illness, or impairment of physical condition. Pure emotional disturbance does not qualify without accompanying physical effects.
Supporting sources
A deliberate intent to inflict great bodily injury constitutes implied malice for murder. The intent must target substantial physical harm rather than minor injury. Head strikes with a heavy object often support this finding.
…assault which she has reported; or that the woman believes that notifying her husband will cause him or someone else to inflict bodily injury upon her. A physician who performs an abortion on a married woman without receiving the appropriate signed statement will have his or her license revoked, and is liable to the husband for…