Legal Definitions - cruel and inhumane treatment

CRUEL AND INHUMANE TREATMENT refers to intentional and malicious actions that cause mental or physical suffering to a living creature, especially a human. It can include abusive treatment, outrage, and bodily harm or a reasonable apprehension of bodily harm that endangers life, limb, or health and renders marital cohabitation unsafe or improper.

For example, physical violence committed by one spouse against the other, or conduct that destroys or severely impairs the other spouse's mental health, can be considered extreme cruelty and grounds for divorce. Mental cruelty, on the other hand, involves a course of conduct that creates such anguish that it endangers the life, physical health, or mental health of the other spouse, not involving actual violence.

CRUELTY TO A CHILD is a form of abuse that involves malicious or criminally negligent acts that cause an animal or child to suffer pain or death. It can include physical violence, emotional abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse. For instance, hitting a child with a belt or withholding food from them can be considered cruel and inhumane treatment.

These examples illustrate how CRUEL AND INHUMANE TREATMENT can take various forms and cause harm to individuals or animals. It is important to recognize and address such behavior to prevent further harm and protect the well-being of those affected.