Criteria to be assessed by the Cuban courts to evaluate the veracity of testimonies submitted by sexually abused children between three and six years of age

Abstract

At present, one of the most widely discussed issues with respect to victims' testimonies is the task to be carried out by the investigator, the prosecutor and the judges at the time of assessing them, particularly the later since they are those responsible for the rendering of a judgment, and this is a transcendental act given the legal consequences involved. This can be appreciated particularly at the time of determining whether or not the statements of child-abuse victims between three and six years of age do actually match the material truth and, therefore, the purpose of this research consists in determining what criteria may make the task easier. In this work, the child victim of sexual abuse is characterized both psychologically and socially, thus the methods used are analysis and synthesis, and deduction-induction. The techniques employed are bibliographic review and document analysis. As results, the psychosocial criteria to be considered in assessing the veracity of testimonies by children from three to six years old who have fallen victim to sexual abuse are determined.