VA · jury_instructions
Va. Model Jury Instr. Crim. No. P37.160
Suffocation
The defendant is charged with the crime of suffocation. The Commonwealth must prove beyond
a reasonable doubt each of the following elements of that crime:
(1) That the defendant, without consent, blocked or obstructed the airway of (name of person); and
(2) That such blocking or obstructing of the airway impeded the blood circulation or respiration of
(name of person); and
(3) That such blocking or obstructing the airway resulted in the wounding or bodily injury of (name
of person); and
(4) That the act was done knowingly, intentionally, and unlawfully.
If you find from the evidence that the Commonwealth has proved beyond a reasonable doubt
each of the above elements of the crime as charged, then you shall find the defendant guilty of
suffocation of another [but you shall not fix the punishment until your verdict has been returned and
further evidence has been heard by you].
If you find that the Commonwealth has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt suffocation
of another, but you do find beyond a reasonable doubt:
(1) That the defendant willfully touched (name of person); and
(2) That the touching was done without legal excuse or justification; and
(3) That the touching was done in an angry, rude, insulting, or vengeful manner; then you shall find
the defendant guilty of assault and battery [but you shall not fix the punishment until your verdict has
been returned and further evidence has been heard by you].
If you find that the Commonwealth has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt either of the
above crimes, then you shall find the defendant not guilty.
History
Virginia Model Jury Instructions – Criminal, Release 26, October 2025. The unannotated set, posted by the Supreme Court of Virginia at vacourts.gov; the book states that it is made available with the permission of the publisher, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc.
Provenance
- Source
- vacourts.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-11
- Edition
- crim-2025-10-01
- Content hash
26ba9f678a27d626bf5eca34b5632cd6d28ebffbcbe728e8aec421f33597f4b8
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