My mother's boyfriend strangled me yesterday. He was very angry. I was sitting in the back of the car, and he opened the door and strangled me. I did not fight back because my arms were blocked by his. All I could do was scream. He told me to go die and called me lots of bad words. My mother is a witness. It left marks on my neck, which I have pictures of. I have broken capillaries on the front of my neck and red marks on the back of my neck. Yesterday my face was swollen, I had a bad headache for the rest of the day, and I was very sore. My neck hurt a lot. It was very emotionally distressing, and I was crying. I already reported it to the police but decided not to prosecute him. They said I could change my mind if I wanted to. I am thinking about changing my mind to prosecute him, but I do not know exactly what I should do. What should I do? What are the consequences for this sort of crime? Should I take it to criminal or civil court?
The physical damage was hard to deal with, but the worst part is the psychological damage. I had just said that it felt like they didn't care about me, and that it would be better if I were dead so that no one would have to wait for me anymore, and then right afterwards, he strangled me, telling me he wished I were dead. My worst fears were confirmed. I have struggled with a horrible fear of being murdered, and I felt like a burden on him, and he confirmed my worst fears by strangling me and making it clear that it would be better if I were dead. He attacked me at my most vulnerable point, and that is the most psychologically damaging thing he could have done. I thought that no one would care if I died, and apparently, some people actively want me to be dead. I was slightly depressed before this incident happened, but afterwards, I struggled very severely with suicidal thoughts. For reference, I am an 18 year old female, 5'5.5", 110 pounds. He is around 70 years old, 6'2", 170 pounds, much stronger than me.
The physical damage was hard to deal with, but the worst part is the psychological damage. I had just said that it felt like they didn't care about me, and that it would be better if I were dead so that no one would have to wait for me anymore, and then right afterwards, he strangled me, telling me he wished I were dead. My worst fears were confirmed. I have struggled with a horrible fear of being murdered, and I felt like a burden on him, and he confirmed my worst fears by strangling me and making it clear that it would be better if I were dead. He attacked me at my most vulnerable point, and that is the most psychologically damaging thing he could have done. I thought that no one would care if I died, and apparently, some people actively want me to be dead. I was slightly depressed before this incident happened, but afterwards, I struggled very severely with suicidal thoughts. For reference, I am an 18 year old female, 5'5.5", 110 pounds. He is around 70 years old, 6'2", 170 pounds, much stronger than me.