The Support Service’s presentation on medico-social intervention services at the 6th Annual Symposium of the Laboratoire de sciences judiciaires et de médecine légale (LSJML)
On May 9, 2023, the Support Service was invited to give a presentation on medico-social intervention services as part of the 6th Symposium of the Laboratoire de sciences judiciaires et de médecine légale (LSJML), devoted this year to crimes of a sexual nature. This event is part of the continuing education program offered to LSJML employees. For the first time, it was open to everyone working in this field. In all, more than 400 people took part, both in person and online (on TEAMS).
The aim of this year’s symposium was to understand how forensic evidence is collected, analyzed and applied in sexual assault cases. In addition to representatives from the Support Service, the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM), prosecution and defence lawyers, a judge and experts in biology, toxicology and documentation from the LSJML also took part in the event. It was an excellent opportunity for us to learn from our partners and to share information on the challenges associated with collecting forensic evidence in designated centres.
We reviewed five of these challenges:
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Initial consent to the kit
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The victim’s memory
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Delays in sample taking
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The victim’s health
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Ongoing consent during the examination
Judging from the questions and comments that followed our presentation, we believe we were able to help our colleagues understand the complexity of collecting forensic evidence from victims of sexual assault while respecting their autonomy and consent.
The Support Service team would like to thank the organizers at the Laboratoire de sciences judiciaires et de médecine légale for their invitation.
Feel free to contact us with any questions you may have by email at: infoserviceconseil@cvasm.ca
