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Clinical forensic examinations and prosecution in Danish child physical abuse cases.

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Title: Clinical forensic examinations and prosecution in Danish child physical abuse cases.
Authors: Slot, Liselott1 (AUTHOR) liselott.slot@sund.ku.dk, Thorlacius-Ussing, Lykke1 (AUTHOR) lykke.ussing@sund.ku.dk, Justesen, Daniella1 (AUTHOR) daniella.justesen@sund.ku.dk, Bugge, Anne Birgitte Dyhre1 (AUTHOR) anne.bugge@sund.ku.dk, Lynnerup, Niels1 (AUTHOR) nly@sund.ku.dk, Banner, Jytte1 (AUTHOR) jytte.banner@outlook.dk, Wingren, Carl Johan1 (AUTHOR) carl.johan.wingren@sund.ku.dk
Source: Child Abuse & Neglect. Feb2026, Vol. 172, pN.PAG-N.PAG. 1p.
Subject Terms: *Child abuse, Prosecution, Indictments, Forensic medicine, Child abuse laws, Skin injuries, Forensic sciences, Crime victims
Abstract: Despite the central role of forensic medical examinations in child physical abuse cases, evidence on how their findings impact prosecution is scarce. We studied the association between the dependent variable, filing of formal charges, and independent variables related to the child, suspect, and case characteristics, the acts of violence, and forensic findings, such as cutaneous lesions. We included 221 children aged between four and 14 years who were reported as victims of suspected physical abuse to the Copenhagen Police between April 1, 2020 and December 31, 2022. All the children participated in a video-recorded interview and underwent a clinical forensic medical examination. Data were extracted from police reports, court documents, and forensic reports. Logistic regression models were applied. Formal charges were filed in 56 cases (25 %). Children's disclosures of violence exposure were associated with the filing of formal charges, irrespective of forensic findings (abuse-related findings: OR = 5.4, 95 % CI [1.7, 16.6]; accidental/unspecific findings: OR = 3.9, 95 % CI [1.4, 10.9]). In cases where violence was undisclosed but abuse-related lesions were found, a borderline association was observed (OR = 3.2, 95 % CI [0.9, 11.8]). The child's disclosure of violence seems of importance for filing formal charges, and the forensic medical examination may be important in the absence of such disclosure, but this needs confirmation in larger studies. Knowledge of factors that influence prosecution decisions may contribute to secure systematic assessment of every child physical abuse case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Child Abuse & Neglect is the property of Pergamon Press - An Imprint of Elsevier Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Education Research Complete
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DbLabel: Education Research Complete
An: 190990371
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PubType: Academic Journal
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Items – Name: Title
  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: Clinical forensic examinations and prosecution in Danish child physical abuse cases.
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  Label: Authors
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Slot%2C+Liselott%22">Slot, Liselott</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> liselott.slot@sund.ku.dk</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Thorlacius-Ussing%2C+Lykke%22">Thorlacius-Ussing, Lykke</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> lykke.ussing@sund.ku.dk</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Justesen%2C+Daniella%22">Justesen, Daniella</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> daniella.justesen@sund.ku.dk</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Bugge%2C+Anne+Birgitte+Dyhre%22">Bugge, Anne Birgitte Dyhre</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> anne.bugge@sund.ku.dk</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lynnerup%2C+Niels%22">Lynnerup, Niels</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> nly@sund.ku.dk</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Banner%2C+Jytte%22">Banner, Jytte</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> jytte.banner@outlook.dk</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Wingren%2C+Carl+Johan%22">Wingren, Carl Johan</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> carl.johan.wingren@sund.ku.dk</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Child+Abuse+%26+Neglect%22">Child Abuse & Neglect</searchLink>. Feb2026, Vol. 172, pN.PAG-N.PAG. 1p.
– Name: Subject
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  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Child+abuse%22">Child abuse</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Prosecution%22">Prosecution</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Indictments%22">Indictments</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Forensic+medicine%22">Forensic medicine</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Child+abuse+laws%22">Child abuse laws</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Skin+injuries%22">Skin injuries</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Forensic+sciences%22">Forensic sciences</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Crime+victims%22">Crime victims</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Despite the central role of forensic medical examinations in child physical abuse cases, evidence on how their findings impact prosecution is scarce. We studied the association between the dependent variable, filing of formal charges, and independent variables related to the child, suspect, and case characteristics, the acts of violence, and forensic findings, such as cutaneous lesions. We included 221 children aged between four and 14 years who were reported as victims of suspected physical abuse to the Copenhagen Police between April 1, 2020 and December 31, 2022. All the children participated in a video-recorded interview and underwent a clinical forensic medical examination. Data were extracted from police reports, court documents, and forensic reports. Logistic regression models were applied. Formal charges were filed in 56 cases (25 %). Children's disclosures of violence exposure were associated with the filing of formal charges, irrespective of forensic findings (abuse-related findings: OR = 5.4, 95 % CI [1.7, 16.6]; accidental/unspecific findings: OR = 3.9, 95 % CI [1.4, 10.9]). In cases where violence was undisclosed but abuse-related lesions were found, a borderline association was observed (OR = 3.2, 95 % CI [0.9, 11.8]). The child's disclosure of violence seems of importance for filing formal charges, and the forensic medical examination may be important in the absence of such disclosure, but this needs confirmation in larger studies. Knowledge of factors that influence prosecution decisions may contribute to secure systematic assessment of every child physical abuse case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Child Abuse & Neglect is the property of Pergamon Press - An Imprint of Elsevier Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=ehh&AN=190990371
RecordInfo BibRecord:
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2025.107864
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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      Pagination:
        PageCount: 1
        StartPage: N.PAG
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Child abuse
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Prosecution
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Indictments
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Forensic medicine
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Child abuse laws
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Skin injuries
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Forensic sciences
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Crime victims
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    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Clinical forensic examinations and prosecution in Danish child physical abuse cases.
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            NameFull: Slot, Liselott
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            NameFull: Thorlacius-Ussing, Lykke
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            NameFull: Justesen, Daniella
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            NameFull: Bugge, Anne Birgitte Dyhre
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            NameFull: Lynnerup, Niels
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            – D: 01
              M: 02
              Text: Feb2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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