Domestic and sexual violence in Australia: Current evidence and the potential role of forensic science

Violence perpetrated against women in Australia is being referred to as at crisis point. The National Plan for Violence Against Women and Children outlines the national collaborative approach to addressing this issue. While paramount to the successful apprehension of domestic and sexual violence perpetrators, forensic science escapes specific consideration in the National Plan. Only a single reference to the word “forensic” is contained in the 144-page document- “Ensure victim-survivors have access to timely forensic examinations”. Forensic science must play a larger role in responding to increasing family, domestic, and sexual violence (FDSV). In using the National Plan as a foundation, this review collates available Australian data to provide commentary and summarise the experiences of victim-survivors, the current legislative climate, and future directions that may address this challenge. Much of the literature captures FDSV, but for this research, only domestic, otherwise referred to as intimate partner violence (IPV), and sexual violence (SV) will be commented on, owing to their close association with forensic science as a judicial tool.