Forensic Clinical Examination of Victims of Sexual Violence: A Study from Greece

Research Article

Austin J Forensic Sci Criminol. 2019; 6(1): 1080.

Forensic Clinical Examination of Victims of Sexual Violence: A Study from Greece

Katsos K1*, Sakelliadis E1, Zorba E1, Tsitsika A2, Papadodima S1 and Spiliopoulou C1

¹Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

²Adolescent Health Unit, Second Department of Pediatrics, “P. and A. Kyriakou” Athens Children’s Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

*Corresponding author: Katsos K, Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 75 Mikras Asias St, 11527, Athens, Greece

Received: June 27, 2019; Accepted: August 13, 2019; Published: August 20, 2019

Abstract

In Greece, as in many other countries, rape and other sexual acts are legally characterized as criminal offenses. Furthermore, a Forensic Pathologist is required to examine victims of sexual assaults, in order to record ano-genital injuries that may suggest rape, and extra genital injuries that may indicate physical violence. The aim of the present study is to describe the phenomenon of sexual violence in the Attica prefecture (Greece), using real cases after a victim’s allegation, and to discover differences, based on the various variables of the violent sexual incident. During the period of the study a total of 100 victims were examined for allegations of sexual violence. The majority of the cases concerned victimization in the community context, and more half of the victims claimed that they knew the offender(s). Over half of the allegations in our study concerned sexual victimization of children and adolescents, with a remarkable peek at young adolescents (11-15 years old). Head injuries, along with injuries located at the back and the thighs, were observed more frequently at victims that were sexually assaulted by strangers, rather than by known-to-the-victim offenders. Injuries located at the trunk (thorax, abdomen, and back), along with those located at the thighs, were ascertained as often in victims that had made allegations only for physical violence, as in victims of sexual assaults.

Keywords: Forensic medicine; Legal medicine; Forensic clinical examination; Sexual assault; Sexual abuse; Greece

Introduction

PAccording to the World Health Organization sexual violence is defined as “any sexual act, attempt to obtain a sexual act, unwanted sexual comments or advances, or acts to traffic, or otherwise directed, against a person’s sexuality using coercion, by any person regardless of their relationship to the victim, in any setting, including but not limited to home and work” [1].

Despite the fact that the extent of sexual victimization is not and probably will never be known, population-based studies have readily reported a prevalence of sexual violent acts at about 13–39% among adult women and 3% among men. The most common and wellknown sexual act is considered to be rape. In the majority of cases, rape includes at least a penile/vaginal or a penile/anal penetration. Unfortunately, only a small percentage (16–38%) of rape victims report such an event to law enforcement agencies [2].

In Greece, as in many other countries, rape and other sexual acts are legally characterized as criminal offenses. According to the Hellenic Penal Code (HPC), rape is considered a felony and the minimum sentence that could be imposed to the offender is imprisonment for a period of 5 years. In cases with multiple offenders, the sentence is imprisonment for a period of at least 10 years.

A Forensic Pathologist in Greece is required to examine victims of sexual assaults, in order to record ano-genital injuries that may suggest rape, and extra genital injuries that may indicate physical violence. Furthermore, the Forensic Pathologist is responsible for the sampling of any biological material deemed necessary, based on the victim’s testimony.

The aim of the present study is to explore whether there are remarkable differences between allegations for sexual violence in the domestic and the community context (as defined by WHO’s typology of violence, in conjunction to the HPC and the Hellenic Law for Domestic Violence-HLDV), and between allegations against knownto- the-victim offenders and strangers. In addition, we will attempt to compare the results of previously published forensic studies, about sexual violence, with the findings of the population we examined.

Materials and Methods

From 2012 to 2016, 2466 forensic clinical examinations for alleged interpersonal violence were performed at the Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology of the Medical School of National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). Forensic reports and supplementary interview reports for allegations about sexual violence were collected for analysis.

Allegations were divided into two categories: i) cases of domestic violence, subjected to the HLDV, and ii) cases of community violence, subjected to the HPC. Furthermore, based on the identification of the perpetrators by the victims, cases of community violence were divided as assaults by known-to-the-victim offenders and strangers, creating two new categories: i) sexual violence committed by knownto- the-victim offenders, that included cases of domestic violence and cases of community violence between acquaintances, and ii) sexual violence committed by strangers, that included cases of community violence between strangers.

For every alleged sexual violence incident, the following variables were recorded:

1. The demographic characteristics of the victims and of the offenders (sex, age, nationality, employment status and marital status).

2. The total number of offenders in each violent incident.

3. The date of violent incident (hour, day, month).

4. The place of violent incident (public or private).

5. The victim examination, performed by another physician prior to the forensic examination.

6. The period (in days) between the incident and the allegation.

7. The period (in days) between the incident and the forensic clinical examination.

8. The type of injuries (ano-genital and extra genital injuries).

9. The anatomic distribution of extra genital injuries (head, neck, trunk, upper and lower limbs).

Data are presented as absolute and relative (%) frequencies. Categorical data were analyzed using Pearson’s chi-square test. Data analysis was performed using the statistical package for social sciences software (SPSS version 25.0, SPSS Inc. Chicago, Illinois). A p ‹0.05 was considered as statistically significant.

The collected data were collected anonymized and the Committee of Bioethics of the Medical School of NKUA approved the study.

Results

During the period of the study a total of 100 victims were examined for allegations of sexual violence, thus representing a 4.1% of the total of cases concerning interpersonal violence (Table 1). In 54 cases, the victims claimed that they knew the sexual offender(s). 75.0% of the allegations concerned a penile/vaginal or a penile/anal penetration.