Examination of a person who has been a victim of a physical or sexual assault may be very important for upcoming legal proceedings.In the context of a clinical forensic examination,physical findings are recorded and b...Examination of a person who has been a victim of a physical or sexual assault may be very important for upcoming legal proceedings.In the context of a clinical forensic examination,physical findings are recorded and biological trace material is gathered and secured.Ideally,all forensic findings are documented in a detailed report combined with photographic docu-mentation,which employs a forensic scale to depict the size of the injuries.However,the integrity of such forensic findings depends particularly on two factors.First,the examination needs to be conducted professionally to ensure that the findings are properly admissible as court evidence.Second,the examination should take place as soon as possible because the opportunity to successfully secure biological samples declines rapidly with time.Access to low-threshold clinical forensic examinations is not evenly provided in all member states of the European Union(EU);in some states,they are not available at all.As part of the JUST_(e)U!(Juridical standards for clinical forensic examinations of victims of violence in Europe)pro-ject,the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Clinical Forensic Imaging in Graz,Austria created(in cooperation with its international partner consortium)a questionnaire:the purpose was to collect information about support for victims of physical and/or sexual assault in obtaining a low-threshold clinical forensic examination in various countries of the EU.Our paper pro-vides a summary of the responses and an overview of the current situation concerning pro-vided clinical forensic services.展开更多
基金This work was supported by the Justice Programme of the European Union[grant number:JUST/2015/SPOB/AG/VICT](Action grants to support national or transnational projects to enhance the rights of victims of crime/victims of violence).The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the authors of this publication and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Commission.
文摘Examination of a person who has been a victim of a physical or sexual assault may be very important for upcoming legal proceedings.In the context of a clinical forensic examination,physical findings are recorded and biological trace material is gathered and secured.Ideally,all forensic findings are documented in a detailed report combined with photographic docu-mentation,which employs a forensic scale to depict the size of the injuries.However,the integrity of such forensic findings depends particularly on two factors.First,the examination needs to be conducted professionally to ensure that the findings are properly admissible as court evidence.Second,the examination should take place as soon as possible because the opportunity to successfully secure biological samples declines rapidly with time.Access to low-threshold clinical forensic examinations is not evenly provided in all member states of the European Union(EU);in some states,they are not available at all.As part of the JUST_(e)U!(Juridical standards for clinical forensic examinations of victims of violence in Europe)pro-ject,the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Clinical Forensic Imaging in Graz,Austria created(in cooperation with its international partner consortium)a questionnaire:the purpose was to collect information about support for victims of physical and/or sexual assault in obtaining a low-threshold clinical forensic examination in various countries of the EU.Our paper pro-vides a summary of the responses and an overview of the current situation concerning pro-vided clinical forensic services.