Forensic toxicology in drug-facilitated sexual assault

• Type: Another Publication in an International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2013

Authors

Ricardo Jorge Dinis Oliveira (Author) FMUP; Teresa Magalhães (Author) ICBAS

Journal

Title: Toxicology Mechanisms And Methods

Vol. 23

Pages: 471-478

ISSN: 1537-6516

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 29 Citations

Scopus - 38 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-006-7R3

DOI: 10.3109/15376516.2013.796034

Abstract (EN): The low rates of reporting, prosecution and conviction that characterize sexual assault, is likely even more evident in drug-facilitated cases. Typically, in these crimes, victims are incapacitated and left unable to resist sexual advances, unconscious, unable to fight off the abuser or to say "no" and unable to clearly remember the circumstances surrounding the events due to anterograde amnesia. The consequence is the delay in performing toxicological analysis aggravated by the reluctance of the victim to disclose the crime. Moreover since "date rape drugs" are often consumed with ethanol and exhibit similar toxicodynamic effects, the diagnosis is erroneously performed as being classical ethanol intoxication. Therefore, it is imperative to rapidly consider toxicological analysis in drug-facilitated sexual assaults. The major focus of this review is to harmonize practical approaches and guidelines to rapidly uncover drug-facilitated sexual assault, namely issues related to when to perform toxicological analysis, toxicological requests, samples to be collected, storage, preservation and transport precautions and xenobiotics or endobiotics to be analyzed.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 8