The present work discusses the field of child treatment in the procedure of interview regarding a criminal offence where the child is involved as a victim or a witness. In the initial part, legal regulation is presented on international, European, and national levels. Afterwards, factors and background of family violence phenomenon and sexual abuse of children are described. This aims to encourage the reader to forming a relation toward violence against children and an understanding of the entire mechanism that causes violence and in a way unconsciously preserves it.
Contained in a more extensive chapter on forensic interview is the history and development of this interview technique, the competence of a child to testify, the comprising the explanation of development of a child’s thinking, communication skills, memory, inclination to lie or tell the truth, an well as attribute of suggestibility. Presented is the applicability in different stages of (pre)criminal procedure. Attention is also dedicated to the person performing the forensic interview, from a professional as well as a personal aspect. Given are the phases and guidelines of the best known and empirically proven the most successful National Institute of Child Health and Human Development protocol (NICHD protocol) for forensic interviewing. An answer is provided to the question of why drawing is appropriate during performing an interview, and the use of anatomical dolls evaluated. Treated in the sense of comparative law are Child Advocacy Centers and Barnahus, the introduction of which is also proposed in Slovenia. Moreover, a case of good practice in Croatia is listed.
Presented in the final work are the results of the carried-out interviews with three experts who encounter in their work the practical aspect of using forensic interview.
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