Prosecutors\u27 perceptions of the utility of \u27relationship\u27 evidence in sexual abuse trials

For successful prosecution of sex offences, defined elements that comprise each charge (such as the acts that occurred and offenders&rsquo; identities) need to be established beyond reasonable doubt. This study explored the potential benefit (from a prosecution perspective) of eliciting another type of evidence; evidence regarding the relationship between the victim and perpetrator that may explain the victim&rsquo;s responses. Fourteen prosecutors representing every major Australian jurisdiction participated in individual interviews or a focus group where they were asked to reflect on the perceived relevance of relationship evidence in sex offence trials, and the potential impact of this evidence on court process and outcomes. All prosecutors gave strong support for the premise of including relationship evidence in victim and witness statements, as well as in suspect interviews; however, this type of evidence was not routinely being included in interviews or admitted in trials. The majority of the discussion centred on:(a) the benefits and prevalence of eliciting relationship evidence; (b) how relationship&nbsp;evidence is best elicited in police interviews; and (c) challenges in presenting relationship&nbsp;evidence at trial. Each of these areas, their practical implications and directions for future&nbsp;research are briefly discussed.</div

The impact of interviewer working hours on police interviews with children.

Fatigue resulting from unpredictable or extended working conditions is a factor that negatively impacts the performance of police officers. In this study, we considered how investigative interviewing of children is influenced by interviewer working conditions. We examined two working conditions concerning when interviews were conducted: a) during early duty shift, b) an hour before the end of an interviewer’s duty shift and after the end of a shift. We analysed 102 police interviews with children and identified clues that interviews which commenced during early duty shift had more appropriate approaches than interviews in the other condition. Inappropriate approaches were not significantly affected by interviewer working conditions. These outcomes suggest considering new knowledge specific to the behaviour of interviewers according to working conditions and provide promising foundations for further research