From Report to Court: Digital Guide

It might be very difficult to think about, but you should consider getting medical attention as soon as possible.

In addition to receiving treatment for any injuries you may have received, you can discuss any concerns that you have about pregnancy or sexually transmitted infections. You may also be able to access other specialist support services, such as counselling. There may be an opportunity to gather evidence if you want to report what happened to the police.

You can get medical treatment by visiting the Accident and Emergency (A&E) department at your local hospital or by going to see your GP. You could also go to a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC). We talk more about SARCs on the next page.

Will my visit to the hospital or GP be kept confidential?

In general, doctors must keep anything their patient tells them confidential. There are strict professional guidelines in place which outline when doctors can and cannot share information they receive from patients.

There are some circumstances when doctors do have to share information with the police. These could include a situation where the doctor thinks the patient has been assaulted but she cannot tell the police (for example because she is unconscious or lacks mental capacity), or where the doctor thinks it is the public interest (for example because there is a serious risk of harm to the public).

In general, medical records are confidential. However, if you decide to report to the police, the police or the lawyers involved with the case may seek copies of relevant parts of your medical records during the investigation and any court case that may happen. Usually, you will be asked to give your permission for the records to be disclosed. These medical records will then form part of the evidence in the case which means they can be shown to the defendant’s lawyers.

If you have experienced sexual violence you may be able to get both medical treatment and a forensic medical examination from a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC). We talk more about forensic medical examinations and what they are in the section below.

The services provided by SARCs are free, confidential and can be accessed entirely independently from the police and other agencies in the criminal justice system. They are available to people immediately after an incident and up to a year later.

If you have contacted the police after an incident of sexual violence they may take you to a SARC. Alternatively, you can decide to go to a SARC without contacting the police.

At the SARC you can receive medical care and treatment, a forensic medical examination and you can be referred to other specialist services for any additional support you need. The SARC can store samples taken from you while you decide whether to report the offence to the police. You can also ask for your samples to be tested anonymously and then be informed if the suspect is identified. If you decide that you do want to report the incident, the SARC can put you in touch with a specially trained police officer.

SARCs are open 24-hours a day and whilst they are often partially funded by the police, they are usually run in partnership between National Health Services and local voluntary organisations.

There are a number of SARCs throughout England and Wales. To find your local SARC click here.

The purpose of a forensic medical examination is to obtain evidence that may be useful in any criminal investigation or trial. This might include gathering traces of skin, hair or bodily fluids from the your body, and examining any injuries you might have.

A forensic medical examination usually takes place at a SARC. If there is no SARC in your area, getting a forensic medical examination will require you to report your assault to the police, who can arrange for you to see a Forensic Medical Examiner (FME). An FME is a doctor who is trained to collect evidence that can go before a court.

The police can also gather forensic evidence usually an early evidence kit.

For information on reporting to the police and how they may obtain forensic evidence see the section on ‘reporting to the police’.

Do I have to have a forensic medical examination?

The forensic medical examination cannot take place without your consent (agreement). If you agree to the forensic medical examination, you will be agreeing to the results and the evidence gathered being given to the police. You can agree to some parts of the examination but refuse others. You can stop the examination at any time.

What will happen during a forensic medical examination?

Taking samples

A forensic medical examination will involve gathering traces of any bodily fluid, skin or hair that the suspect has left. If you have washed before you have the examination, tell the doctor, as it may still be possible to find physical evidence. You may be asked to give a blood or urine sample, particularly if you had consumed drugs or alcohol, or are concerned that someone had ‘spiked’ your drink (put drugs or alcohol into your drink without you knowing).

Samples collected from you, from your clothes or from the scene of the assault may be sent for testing by a forensic scientist. If you attend the examination wearing the clothes worn during or immediately after the assault, you should take a change of clothes and underwear with you to change into after the examination. If you are attending wearing different clothes, it would be useful to take those worn during or immediately after the incident with you, so that these can be given to the doctor. Because the clothes you were wearing during the incident may be evidence, they may not be returned to you until any criminal proceedings have ended.

Checking for injuries

You will be examined for injuries. This may involve an internal examination of your vagina, anus or mouth to look for any bruises or cuts, as well as any other injuries on any parts of your body. Any injuries that are found will be noted by the doctor for use in a witness statement. Visible injuries should be photographed.

Questions about your sexual health

During the examination the doctor may have to ask you intimate questions such as when your last period was, whether you use contraceptives and whether you have recently engaged in consensual sexual activity. These questions are necessary to find out whether you are at risk of becoming pregnant and are also important when it comes to testing physical evidence, such as semen.

How long will the examination last?

The appointment with the doctor will take around 2-3 hours, but only about 20-30 minutes of that time will be the medical examination itself. The rest of the time will be spent talking with the doctor or a support worker to get information from you about what has happened, to find out what other support you might need and to provide medical treatment if needed. You can ask a friend or relative to be with you during the examination if you wish. If you need an interpreter, you can ask for one.

Alcohol and drugs

If you have consumed alcohol or drugs through your own choice, you should tell the doctor as much as you can about what you have consumed and when. You should not be judged or have your complaint taken less seriously because you have drunk a lot of alcohol or consumed drugs and you should not be investigated for drug use.

If your case goes to court and it emerges that you had drunk alcohol or used drugs by choice and had not mentioned it, it could affect your case.

After the examination

After the examination the doctor will write a report about the samples taken from you during your examination. If the case goes to court the doctor who examined you and the forensic scientist will have to produce written statements and may attend court to give evidence.

How to report

There are different ways that you can report to the police:

In an emergency, you can contact the police by dialing 999. If you are deaf or hard of hearing you can text phone 18000. These calls are free, so it doesn’t matter if you have phone credit or not.

If its not an emergency, you can report to the police by going to your local police station in person, or you can call 101 (or textphone 18000 101) and ask for your local police station. These calls are charged.

When you first report a matter to the police this is called an initial complaint, you can ask to speak to a police officer of the same gender as you if you would be more comfortable.

Can someone else report for me?

It may be that you want the police to be aware about an incident of sexual violence but do not want to contact them yourself. If this is the case you can ask a third party (such as your GP, a friend or support organisation) to report the incident to the police.

A third-party report can include as much or as little detail as you wish. Third party reports are confidential (the third party does not have to give the police your name or contact details). However, there are circumstances when the police may want to contact you. For example, it may be that the information you give links your case to others, or that they are able to identify the person responsible. If this is the case the police would contact the person or organisation that made the third-party report and ask them to contact you.

What happens when you report

If you call 999 in an emergency, the police should attend your location and the person you speak to may want to keep talking to you until police officers arrive. Your safety should be the most important thing.

If you have called 101, the police will make arrangements for you to either go to your local police station at an appointed time, or arrange for officers to meet you at an appointed time or place to take an initial statement from you. They should ask you about how they can contact you again, so, for example, if you are living with the perpetrator you can make arrangements to speak to an officer without the perpetrator knowing about it, at a time convenient to you.

When you give your initial account, you should not be asked detailed questions about the incident. Instead you may be asked the following:

• whether you need medical assistance or, if you have sought medical treatment, when and from whom
• whether you have any injuries
• the type of incident (for example, rape or sexual assault)
• if you know the person responsible, who he is and where he may be
• if you do not know the person responsible, what he looks like
• where the offence took place, when and what you have done since
• whether you have told anyone else about the incident
• whether you know of any witnesses to the incident
• whether there are any witnesses to events before or after the incident

These questions are asked to find out whether you are at risk of further incidents of violence and to enable the police to start an investigation. Notes will be taken of your initial report so that if your case goes to court the notes can be used to support the prosecution’s case. If you make the initial report over the telephone, a transcript of your telephone call might later be used if your case goes to court.

When you report a matter to the police you will be given a crime reference number and sometimes a CAD or ICAD reference. Keep these reference numbers safe as they help identify your case within the police system, and if you are able to quote them when contacting the police about your case it can make it quicker and easier for the police to respond.

You can ask to speak to a male or female officer, and wherever possible your initial account should be taken by a Specially Trained Officer.

Specially Trained Officers

Specially Trained Officers (STOs) are also referred to as Sexual Offences Investigative Technique Officers (SOIT Officers), Sexual Offences Investigation Trained Officers (also called SOIT Officers) or other terms depending on the police force concerned.

The role of the STO is to provide you with support throughout the investigation. They should meet with you as soon as possible, in person. Where possible the STO should:

• take your initial report
• arrange for a forensic medical examination (where appropriate) and help you get there and back
• take your statement
• keep you updated on developments in your case (as a general rule, they should contact you at least once every 28 days)
• support you by giving you information about the criminal justice system and other organisations/agencies who may be able to assist you

In addition to supporting you, the STO will also be involved in the investigation of your case. If you want information about what is happening in your case or have any concerns about your safety the STO is the person to discuss these with. The person with overall responsibility for your case is the Investigating Officer.

Gathering evidence and medical examination

When you contact the police following an incident of sexual violence, they will want to ensure first and foremost that your medical needs are met.

They will also want to make sure that the forensic evidence is gathered as quickly as possible. They will usually ask you to have forensic medical examination as soon as possible, but may also ask you to gather evidence with an early evidence kit.

See below for further information on the early evidence kit.

See the section above ‘taking a forensic examination’ for further information.

What is an early evidence kit?

An early evidence kit is a kit that you can use to take certain non-intimate samples, such as mouth swabs or urine samples. It isn’t used by a police officer or anyone else – it is for your use only.

You can take a urine sample to test for any drugs that might have been given to you, and a mouth swab to test for traces of semen, if your mouth was penetrated.

This process does not replace a forensic medical examination but helps to make sure that important evidence is preserved. Once samples have been taken with the early evidence kit you can go to the toilet or have a drink without having to worry about evidence being affected.

No evidence can be taken with an early evidence kit without your consent.

Whilst not every survivor feels able or willing to report immediately, the sooner the incident is reported to the police, the better the chances of the police recovering evidence that may assist in a future prosecution.

You can preserve evidence by trying to avoid:

• drinking or eating anything, including any non-essential medication you might be taking
• washing any part of you, including your hair and teeth
• combing or brushing your hair
• cutting your fingernails
• smoking
• going to the toilet or discarding any tampons or sanitary towels
• removing or washing any clothing worn at the time of the incident or afterwards

The place where sexual violence took place is a crime scene. If possible, avoid disturbing, moving, washing or getting rid of anything that might be a useful source of evidence. This may include clothing, bedding, any glass or cup that the suspect has drunk from, discarded cigarette stubs, condoms or any other object the suspect touched.

Other evidence that may be useful and should be identified and preserved includes:

• mobile phone evidence, such as call lists, texts and voicemails
• photos
• emails
• messages from social media such as Facebook and Twitter