Biological Evidence Management for DNA Analysis in Cases of Sexual Assault

Biological evidence with forensic interest may be found in several cases of assault, being particularly relevant if sexually related. Sexual assault cases are characterized by low rates of disclosure, reporting, prosecution, and conviction. Biological evidence is sometimes the only way to prove the occurrence of sexual contact and to identify the perpetrator. 

The major focus of this review is to propose practical approaches and guidelines to help health, forensic, and law enforcement professionals to deal with biological evidence for DNA analysis. Attention should be devoted to avoiding contamination, degradation, and loss of biological evidence, as well as respecting specific measures to properly handle evidence (i.e., selection, collection, packing, sealing, labeling, storage, preservation, transport, and guarantee of the chain custody). 

Biological evidence must be carefully managed since the relevance of any finding in Forensic Genetics is determined, in the first instance, by the integrity and quantity of the samples submitted for analysis.

...4.1. Destruction

To avoid the destruction of evidence, the professional to whom the case was reported should inform the victim or any person who reported the incidence/offence about practices that the victim should refrain from until FME can be completed [3–5, 26, 48, 49]:

1. shower or wash any part of the body, including mouth, hands, and head hair;
2. brush teeth;
3. clean or cut fingernails;
4. comb or cut paint hair;
5. perform vaginal irrigation;
6. urinate, defecate, or vomit (and if this is imperative, do it in a clean container with a lid);
7. eat, drink, chew, or smoke;
8. run or perform any kind of sport activities or the same;
9. change, wash, or destroy clothing worn during the event;
10. change or destroy sanitary pads worn during the event;
11. touch the crime scene (including emptying garbage can or flushing the toilet).

Moreover in order to prevent DNA degradation, the forensic examiner must correctly select the type of material used for collection and storage (e.g., paper versus plastic containers—please see Section 5.3) and ensure complete drying of the sample prior to packaging [9, 13, 50]...

Below:  Forensic Genetics request form used for sexual assault cases

Full article at:  http://goo.gl/nWJLGs

By:   Teresa Magalhães, 1 , 2 , 3 , * Ricardo Jorge Dinis-Oliveira, 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 Benedita Silva, 1 Francisco Corte-Real, 2 , 5 andDuarte Nuno Vieira 2 , 5

¹Department of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

²Forensic Sciences Center (CENCIFOR), Coimbra, Portugal

³Institute of Research and Advanced Training in Health Sciences and Technologies (IINFACTS), Department of Sciences, University Institute of Health Sciences (IUCS), CESPU, Gandra, Portugal

⁴UCIBIO/REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Toxicology, Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

⁵Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

*Teresa Magalhães: Email: tp.pu.dem@agamt

 

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