My stepfather use to beat the shit out of my mom a lot when I was growin’ up (of course, a lot of the time, she goaded him into it… it was a sort of game they enjoyed playing with one another). Anyway, oftentimes one of the first things he would do is yank the telephone cord out of the wall, ‘cause he knew I was just as likely as not to try and call somebody. Cutting off comms right before you do the dirty is a smart move ^^