Randell Isabel, Seymour Fred, McCann Clare, Blackwell Suzanne
School of Psychology, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
School of Psychology (Speech Science), University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
Psychiatr Psychol Law. 2021 May 26;29(1):134-153. doi: 10.1080/13218719.2021.1904449. eCollection 2022.
New Zealand's Sexual Violence Courts Pilot was established in late 2016, intended in part, to reduce the stress experienced by complainants. Young witnesses who testified in the specialist courts and their caregivers were interviewed about their experiences of court involvement. Interview transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis and the following themes were identified: The period between reporting an alleged offence and the trial is far too long and stressful; moving forward with life is difficult until the trial has concluded; cross-examination is distressing; feeling comfortable and supported when at court is important; safety and distance from the defendant when at court is important; separation of young witnesses from their caregivers at court is difficult; information is lacking throughout the process; and parenting young witnesses through the court process is challenging. Young witnesses typically experienced court involvement as very stressful and distressing, and further innovation within the courts is therefore needed.
新西兰性暴力法庭试点项目于2016年末设立，部分目的是减轻投诉人的压力。对在专门法庭作证的年轻证人及其照顾者就他们参与法庭事务的经历进行了访谈。使用主题分析法对访谈记录进行了分析，确定了以下主题：从举报涉嫌犯罪到审判之间的时间过长且压力巨大；在审判结束之前，继续正常生活很困难；交叉询问令人痛苦；在法庭上感到舒适并得到支持很重要；在法庭上与被告保持安全距离很重要；在法庭上让年轻证人与其照顾者分开很困难；整个过程中信息匮乏；在法庭程序中养育年轻证人具有挑战性。年轻证人通常认为参与法庭事务压力极大且令人痛苦，因此法庭需要进一步创新。
