Citation

Jänisch S, Meyer H, Germerott T, Albrecht UV, Schulz Y, Debertin AS. Int. J. Legal Med. 2010; 124(3): 227-235.

Affiliation

Hanover Medical School, Institute of Legal Medicine, Carl-Neuberg-Strasse 1, 30625, Hanover, Germany, (jaenisch.stefanie@mh-hannover.de)

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s00414-010-0430-z

PMID

20182738

Abstract

Medical-forensic examination of sexual assault victims and alleged offenders is a common task of many forensic institutes. In the current study, the results from samples taken at the Institute of Legal Medicine, Hanover Medical School, during a period from 2005 to 2007 were retrospectively evaluated. In total, 292 victims (283 females and nine males) and 88 suspects were examined. At the time of the assault, 41.8% of the victims and 43.2% of the alleged perpetrators were under the influence of alcohol. Injuries were found in 84.9% of the victims and 39.8% of the suspects. Thirty victims (10.3%) reported having been choked or strangled. Cytology was performed in 218 victims. In 81 cases (38.0%), sperm could be detected in vaginal swabs up to 3 days post-assault. In seven (18.9%) out of 37 anal samples, evidence of sperm could be found 24 h post-assault. None of 22 oral samples was positive for sperm. Out of 301 sexual assault cases, 171 could be proved by means of medical-forensic examination. In summary, our evaluation shows that an early medical-forensic examination of both victim and suspect can secure numerous medical findings. Furthermore, persons intoxicated by alcohol, handicapped persons and persons with psychiatric disorders are more vulnerable to become a sexual assault victim.

Language: en