Killing with a Throat Strike

Rebel Rider said:

I was having a beta read through my story, and he doesn't think my villain would die from a throat strike.
The situation: The villain, a woman in her prime, has the MC, a teenage girl with a cybernetic arm, pinned. The MC hits the villain in the throat with her cybernetic hand, which kills the villain. The MC is later upset because she didn't mean to do that. Her cybernetics are stronger than her real limb, so she underestimated her strength. (The cybernetic arm is probably around the strength of a strong man's arm, if not more.) The MC would likely have unarmed combat training, being a bounty hunter.
The villain's body is near some allies, so in theory, if she didn't die quickly, they might be able to save her, which I wouldn't want.
My question, is this realistic or should I do something else? If it's not realistic, where would be a good place for the MC to hit so she gets the same result?

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A strong man's arm is the saddest cybernetic thing I think I've ever heard of.

I'm not sure what you want to have happen - like a crushed/broken trachea, a busted larynx, whatever - but yeah, you can die from getting whacked in the throat hard enough, at the right spot. I don't know, but I don't think it's particularly quick.

I've seen someone get hit in the throat hard enough to be very scary and the reaction is instant, but I don't think a fatality would be.

There's lots of sensitive parts in the throat. Trachea, Carotid, Jugular. Sufficient blunt force trauma could certainly rupture/crush any one of those things with a lucky blow. And with such major parts, death could certainly be possible, if not probably, and nothing less than being rushed to an ER within maybe 10 - 20 minutes would save them.

One doesn't really need a great deal of strength to execute an effective throat strike, but accuracy will count. A precise strike delivered to the trachea for example will instantly change an assailant's focus 95% of the time (from aggression to survival).

If you have any doubts, get someone you trust (rather important) to help you understand. Standing face to face, have your friend place a fingertip (only a fingertip!) directly on the front of your trachea (in that little hollow near the top of your breastbone, between the ends of your collarbones). Now have that friend gently begin pushing that fingertip straight into the front of the trachea . . . see how long you can stand your ground.

You'll back up and cease this experiment pretty damn quick--if your friend's finger gets wet, he/she pushed too hard and now you have another problem. Call 911 . . .

This is a trick we teach women as a defense against being strangled. It doesn't require a great deal of strength, just presence of mind and a willingness to do some serious harm.

A simple attack to the trachea is rarely instantly fatal, but it can be, depending upon the circumstances. It is certainly debilitating and can render the victim more vulnerable to subsequent blows and fatal consequences.

Lethal (assuming lucky or accurate strike) yes, fast, no...gasping, flailing fall to knees, gasping, turning blue, wheezing, count to 100 dead. That assumes the villains toadies don't know how to do and have the necessary supplies to do an emergency tracheostomy, and very few do.

I feel like there is a more effective way to kill the villain other than a throat punch. You would have to do way more damage than punch the guy with the strength of a strong man. If it's supposed to be an accident maybe it's like they punch the villain and the villain hits hit head on a sharp object like the corner of a table or something. That is 1) a believable death and 2) a quick one that is more realistic.

If you feel you need to justify it in your story, have the blow crush the throat and snap the spine. Quite believable with a mechanical device that over-exerted on what was supposed to be a simple punch. Doesn't have to be on purpose or accurately directed, lucky is just as good a reason.

Jeff

Yeah you'd have to stress that this was a lucky blow. It is possible but it's not normal, and as Rachel said having them hit their head after being punched would be a lot more believable. Most of the "man killed by a single punch" headlines you see are because the guy hit his head on something/the pavement on his way down.

Siding with cornflake and WeaselFire. If it's cybernetic, have her just destroy the throat. Avoids any question of luck or skill. Plus GODDAMN CYBERNETICS.