Documentation and clinical forensic evaluation of physical torture sequelae. Characteristics, possibilities and problems

Background. There has been a recent increase of requests for clinical forensic evaluation of torture survivors, not only in Germany. These evaluations can be challenging. Objective. The diagnostic and organizational characteristics, possibilities and unsolved issues concerning the clinical forensic evaluation of torture survivors are presented. Material and methods. After presenting a case report the characteristics of forensic evaluations in cases of alleged torture are discussed, taking particular account of the results of an interdisciplinary conference on this topic held in Dusseldorf on 10 and 11 March 2017 (http://www.folteropfer-sehen.de). Results. The documentation and evaluation of torture sequelae should follow the general standards of clinical forensic evaluations under consideration of the Istanbul protocol and should be performed only by trained examiners. Although they can have an essential impact on asylum procedures, forensic evaluations are only rarely commissioned by German state authorities. The organizational and financial burdens are often passed on to the affected persons or psychosocial institutions. Conclusion. Clinical forensic expertise can help to clarify cases of alleged torture. It is not acceptable that the financial and organizational burdens for such expertise are frequently passed on to the affected persons or psychosocial institutions, when they should actually be borne by the state authorities