Intentional Injury in İzmir: Complaint, Mediation and Penalties (TCK 86-87)

A discussion escalating into a fight, or tension at the workplace or in traffic turning into physical contact, is among the most frequently encountered criminal law disputes in practice. The Turkish Penal Code regulates such conduct under the heading of intentional injury and provides for widely differing sanctions depending on the severity of the result. Depending on the content of the forensic report, the very same incident may be a file that is complaint-dependent and can end through mediation, or one that is investigated ex officio and carries the risk of a prison sentence measured in years. In this article we examine the definition of intentional injury, the simple medical intervention criterion, the complaint deadline, the qualified forms under TCK 86/3, aggravated injury by result under TCK 87, the institutions of mediation and deferral of the announcement of the verdict, and how all of this plays out in İzmir.

What Is Intentional Injury? (TCK 86)

Article 86 of the Turkish Penal Code criminalises intentional conduct that inflicts pain on another person's body or impairs their health or capacity of perception. The basic form of the offence is set out in TCK 86/1 and carries imprisonment from one to three years. The decisive element here is intent: the offender must have carried out the act directed at the victim's body knowingly and willingly. It is not required that the offender foresaw the precise severity of the resulting injury; it is enough that the act itself was intentional. Whether the injury was inflicted by a punch, a kick, a push or an instrument makes no difference to the existence of the offence; those factors affect the level of the penalty. The offence protects bodily integrity and health, so conduct that leaves no mark or effect on the body and remains limited to words or mere pushing may, depending on the circumstances, constitute a different offence such as insult or threat. Mutual injury between the parties is common in practice; in such cases a separate investigation is conducted against each side and the question of who acted under unjust provocation is assessed independently. The offender's age, mental health and state of will at the moment of the incident are further factors that directly shape the scope of liability. This is precisely what separates intentional injury from negligent injury. In negligent injury the offender did not desire the result in any way but caused another person's injury by breaching a duty of care and diligence. Traffic accidents, workplace accidents and medical malpractice are typical examples of that category. The two offence types differ in their penalties, in whether they depend on a complaint and in their eligibility for mediation. For a detailed treatment of that distinction, see our article on negligent injury in traffic accidents.

Simple Medical Intervention, Complaint and Deadline

TCK 86/2 regulates separately the situation where the injury is minor enough to be remedied by simple medical intervention. In that case the penalty is imprisonment from four months to one year or a judicial fine, and the investigation is conducted only upon the victim's complaint. The simple medical intervention criterion is not an abstract notion left to the physician's discretion; it is determined through a standardised assessment based on the guidelines of the Council of Forensic Medicine. Superficial abrasions, bruising, small cuts and simple soft tissue trauma are as a rule accepted within this scope. Injuries requiring sutures, treatment of a fracture, surgery or prolonged treatment fall outside the criterion and TCK 86/1 applies directly. This distinction determines the fate of the file: where the injury can be remedied by simple medical intervention, no investigation begins without a complaint, withdrawal of the complaint ends the prosecution, and the file is referred to the mediation office. The right to complain cannot be exercised indefinitely. Under TCK 73 the victim must lodge a complaint within six months from the day they learn of the act and the identity of the offender. This period is preclusive; if it is missed, no investigation can be conducted for the complaint-dependent offence. It is therefore critical to attend hospital without delay after the incident, obtain a forensic injury report and file the complaint within the deadline. It is also possible to object to the content of the forensic report. Where the report does not match the victim's existing symptoms, a fresh report may be requested from the prosecutor or the court through the Council of Forensic Medicine. Internal organ injuries, concussion and psychiatric effects emerging after the incident are not always visible at the first examination, so a later report can change the legal character of the file entirely. Prescriptions, discharge summaries, imaging results and follow-up examination records should therefore all be preserved.

Qualified Forms (TCK 86/3)

TCK 86/3 provides that where intentional injury is committed under certain circumstances the penalty is increased by one half and, importantly, the investigation is conducted without any complaint being required. These circumstances are: commission against an ascendant, a descendant, a spouse, a former spouse or a sibling; commission against a person who is unable to defend themselves physically or mentally; commission because of a public duty performed by the victim; commission by abusing the influence held as a public official; commission with a weapon; and commission out of a monstrous feeling. In domestic violence cases the most frequently applied limb is commission against a spouse or former spouse. Where these limbs apply, the victim's decision not to complain or to withdraw a complaint does not stop the investigation; the prosecutor proceeds ex officio. The notion of a weapon is broadly construed in criminal law and may cover, alongside firearms, hard objects suitable for use in an attack such as knives, bottles or sticks. Commission out of a monstrous feeling was added in 2022 and captures exceptional situations in which the offender acts from a desire to inflict suffering with extraordinary cruelty. Another significant consequence of these qualified forms is that they fall outside the scope of mediation, so the file is usually carried before the court by indictment. More than one qualified form may be present in a single incident; an injury inflicted on a spouse with a weapon, for instance, engages two separate limbs. In domestic violence cases protective and preventive measures may additionally be requested under Law No. 6284; that procedure is independent of the criminal investigation, moves far more quickly, and seeks the victim's immediate protection through measures such as removal from the home, a no-contact order or provision of shelter. Breaching such a measure may in turn result in coercive detention.

Aggravated Injury by Result (TCK 87)

TCK 87 governs situations in which the act of intentional injury produces grave results going beyond the offender's intent, and grades those results by severity. Under the first paragraph, where the injury causes permanent weakening of the function of one of the senses or organs, permanent difficulty in speech, a permanent scar on the face, a condition endangering life, or, when committed against a pregnant woman, premature birth of the child, the penalty is increased onefold and the lower limit cannot be less than one year. The second paragraph covers graver results: complete loss of the function of a sense or organ, loss of the ability to speak or to procreate, permanent alteration of the face, or, when committed against a pregnant woman, miscarriage. In those cases the penalty is doubled and the lower limit cannot be less than three years. The third paragraph is the most frequently encountered outcome in practice: where a bone is fractured or dislocated, the penalty is increased by up to one half according to the effect of the fracture on vital functions, graded in the forensic report as light, medium or severe, which directly shapes the sentence. The fourth paragraph addresses injury resulting in death; even where the offender did not act with intent to kill, the sentence is eight to twelve years for cases under TCK 86/1 and twelve to eighteen years for cases under TCK 86/3, and the file is heard by the assize court. These increases are not applied in the abstract but to the penalty determined under TCK 86: the basic penalty is fixed first, any increase under TCK 86/3 is applied, and only then does TCK 87 come into play. Where several grave results occur together in one incident, the practice is to take the most serious result as the basis. Because the classification of the result rests entirely on forensic medical assessment, objections to the characterisation in the report can be decisive for the course of the file.

Mediation (CMK 253) and Deferral of the Verdict

Mediation is a mandatory investigative stage governed by CMK 253 that allows the parties to reach an agreement through a mediator. Alongside offences whose investigation and prosecution depend on a complaint, the statute expressly brings intentional injury within its scope, while excluding the qualified forms listed in TCK 86/3. Accordingly, injuries under TCK 86/1 and 86/2, together with TCK 88, are subject to mediation, whereas aggravated injury by result under TCK 87 is not. If the offer of mediation is accepted and the parties reach agreement, the prosecutor issues a decision not to prosecute; if agreement is reached at the prosecution stage, the case is dismissed. The agreed performance may be a payment of money, but it may equally be an apology, the rendering of a service or any other obligation the parties settle upon. If the offer is refused or no agreement is reached, the investigation continues in its ordinary course and that stance cannot in itself be construed against the suspect. Where agreement is reached, however, CMK 253 provides that no compensation action may be brought on account of the offence under investigation, and any action already filed is deemed waived. The victim's treatment costs, loss of earnings and moral damage should therefore be taken into account when the agreed performance is set. Where mediation fails and a conviction follows, another institution that may come into play is deferral of the announcement of the verdict. Governed by CMK 231, it applies to prison sentences of two years or less and depends on conditions such as the defendant having no prior conviction for an intentional offence, redress of the damage, and the defendant's consent. The Constitutional Court annulled the HAGB paragraphs of CMK 231 (taking effect on 30 September 2026), and the 12th Judicial Package adopted in July 2026 re-regulated the institution: torture, ill-treatment and ill-treatment offences committed by public officials in the course of their duties fall outside its scope, and the remedy against the decision has changed from an objection to an appeal (istinaf). As the regulation is very recent, the text applicable to your file should be verified. For details, see our article on deferral of the announcement of the verdict.

The Process in İzmir: Forensic Report, Court and Evidence

In İzmir, intentional injury files are as a rule heard by the criminal courts of first instance at İzmir Courthouse in Bayraklı; where the injury results in death under TCK 87/4, jurisdiction lies with the assize court. The most critical document in the process is the forensic medical report. Attending a health institution as soon as possible after the incident, describing every complaint fully to the physician and, where necessary, obtaining a supplementary report from the İzmir Group Directorate of the Council of Forensic Medicine determines whether the injury will be assessed as remediable by simple medical intervention or as falling under TCK 87. Late attendance may allow findings to fade, with adverse consequences. As to evidence, promptly requesting security camera footage from the scene and its surroundings is of great importance, since most businesses overwrite such recordings within a short period. Collecting witness details, preserving photographs and messages relating to the moment of the incident, and submitting hospital records and treatment expense documents to the file likewise keep the process on a sound footing. In cases of mutual injury allegations, assessments of unjust provocation and self-defence can directly affect the outcome, so obtaining legal support from the statement stage onwards is advisable. It is equally important to know that the right to remain silent and the right to defence counsel apply when giving a statement. The complaining party may join the proceedings as an intervening party at the prosecution stage, thereby being notified of hearings, submitting evidence and being able to appeal the judgment. Because hearing intervals in İzmir can be long given the caseload, submitting the evidence in full from the outset markedly shortens the process. Whether you are proceeding as a complainant or as a suspect, our İzmir criminal lawyer team provides support at every stage of the file.

Frequently Asked Questions

In intentional injury files the content of the forensic report, the complaint deadline and the mediation stage directly affect the outcome. For a legal assessment of your case, whether as complainant or suspect, contact Yücesoy Law Office via our contact page.