Post-traumatic stress disorder in child sexual abuse prosecutions : gaps and opportunities

Abstract

The interface between psychiatry and the law has become common place. Reliance on psychiatry has certainly conduced to more informed court decisions to which it deserves high praise. With specific regard to Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a host of court decisions abound on the critical role that PTSD-evidence has played in informing court decisions over the years. The role of PTSD-evidence, however, remains at its crawling stages in child sexual abuse (CSA) cases despite the potential it bears in effectively prosecuting these cases. This article draws on randomly selected CSA judgments to offer insight on the exact place and role of PTSDevidence in CSA prosecutions.