Genevieve Evans¹, Astrid Livitsanis¹, Grace Staindl-Dymond^1
1Monash University

Sexual assault (SA) is a complex global issue. In Victoria, SA is considered a criminal offence under the 1958 Crimes Act. The Victorian response to SA is medico-legal, supporting the healthcare of the victim-survivor, and the collection of evidence for criminal prosecution. The contribution of forensic evidence to the criminal justice process has been largely neglected in the literature. This research identified the nature of forensic evidence in cases referred to the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine (VIFM), which cases proceed to court, and which factors influence whether a forensic medical practitioner (FMP) receives a subpoena and attends court. A quantitative cross-sectional study design was used to examine 300 cases of SA referred to VIFM in 2017. To identify SA characteristics and progression, univariate statistical analyses were performed, followed by a random forest classification model and linear regressions to identify variables with the highest predictive power. This research found the presence of biological evidence, testing of evidence, and anal injuries were significant positive predictors for VIFM’s reception of a subpoena, and testing of female genital samples positively predicted an FMP appearing in court. The findings of this research will have implications for clinical practice, evidence-based policy, and wider societal education.

This submission was based on a 2023 Honours thesis co-written between all three authors. All authors contributed equally.