Physical violence against a person: criminal-legal aspect
Authors: Gumin O. 
Published: April 2023

The article emphasizes that in the historical development of society, violence is an objective factor accompanying the entire process of its existence. In each historical epoch, the forms and methods of this social phenomenon acquire certain specific changes, but its essence remains unchanged - it is an anti-legal, anti-social, anti-humane phenomenon.

Among the objective factors and factors that generate violence are the deformation of moral guidelines and Christian virtues, the promotion of cruelty, unspirituality and violence is gaining widespread development.

Among violent acts against a person, physical violence is the most serious concern. It remains extremely relevant in any form.

The article states that in Art. 3 of the Constitution of Ukraine clearly prescribes norms aimed at the protection of a person and a citizen: "A person, his life and health, honor and dignity, inviolability and security are the highest social value" [1].

Based on the requirements of the Basic Law, normative legal acts, law enforcement agencies of Ukraine direct all their activities to fight against criminal offenses, ensure legality, and protect the rights and freedoms of citizens. This important function is clearly formulated in Art. 1 of the General part of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (hereinafter the Criminal Code of Ukraine), where it is indicated that it "has as its task the legal protection of the rights and freedoms of man and citizen ... as well as the prevention of criminal offenses" [2].

Thus, the state and its law enforcement agencies face the problem of protecting life, health and security of inviolability, primarily from physical violence.

The article emphasizes that physical violence, aimed primarily at humiliating a person's honor and dignity, causes him not only physical, but also moral and psychological suffering. Emphasis is placed on the fact that the humiliation of a person's dignity negatively affects not only his psychological and moral, but also his spiritual, mental and intellectual state, can push him to revenge, which can lead to tragic consequences.

The article emphasizes that in modern society there are processes that are characterized by rapid changes in all spheres of social life and are based on contradictions and conflicts.

Attention is focused on the fact that physical violence objectively includes conflict in its orbit as a dialectical contradiction between opposite, polar parties.

The article found that physical violence directed against a person is not only illegal from the point of view of criminal law, but also an anti-humane, anti-moral and anti-social action that leads to physical and moral suffering and humiliation of human honor and dignity. It necessarily negatively affects the mental state of the victim.

A significant role in physical violence is played by the mental activity of a person, which is closely related to his moral-willed, emotional-intellectual characteristics and other factors that play an important role in criminal liability and punishment.

The article establishes that the concept of violence as a legal category has received a new understanding in our time. As a result of scientific and technical progress, the emergence of new technical means contributes to the spread of new forms of violence.

The fight against any manifestations of physical violence, a criminal offense, is the constitutional duty of the state and its law enforcement agencies.