Brunel, Maïté
Gathering the statements of minors using the NICHD protocol
- 2022.
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The testimony of a victim, gathered during a judicial inquiry, is sometimes the only available evidence along with that of the presumed author of the crime or offence. When the victim is a minor, the audition is sometimes marked by poor vocabulary, a minimal account and vulnerability to the suggestions introduced by means of overly suggestive questions. In order to optimize the testimonies gathered, several audition protocols based on solid evidence have been developed in recent decades. We present the NICHD (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) protocol which is currently used for training programmes with police and national gendarmerie investigators in France