NCJ Number
214673
Journal
Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 30 Issue: 5 Dated: May 2006 Pages: 537-547
Date Published
May 2006
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This study explored how the Swedish legal system perceived and handled children with learning difficulties who might have been victimized.
Abstract
Overall, expert reports found in the judicial case files of cases involving children with learning difficulties or other disabilities were rarely available or adequate. Furthermore, many of the reports contained in the files were poorly written or prepared by experts who lacked the necessary skills to work with children with learning difficulties. As such, courts were left to make their own assumptions when evaluating the capacity and credibility of the children. The findings strongly suggest the possibility that children with learning and other difficulties may be misunderstood when legal proceedings do not take into consideration their special needs and capabilities when investigating and adjudicating their cases. The findings further reveal that children with learning difficulties in Sweden may be expected to provide the same level of reporting as children without such difficulties. Data were drawn from 39 cases involving children with learning or other disabilities provided by 22 judicial districts in Sweden. A full 33 of the 39 cases involved sexual abuse. The data included the complete files of the cases alleging abuse, threat, and neglect, including court transcripts and expert assessments of the children in terms of their disabilities and possible consequences. Data analysis focused on references to alleged victims’ disabilities, behavior, competencies, and credibility. Future research should focus on the eyewitness capacities of children with various disabilities in order to inform the legal handling of these cases. Table, references