Case Studies

The resource centre is a continually developing area of the website which will be of interest to professionals in the justice system and members of the public.

The following studies illustrate some of the work of intermediaries and are a composite based on a range of cases. IfJ's policy is not to comment on case conclusions and court case verdicts in order to reflect the impartiality of intermediaries. 

The case studies can be searched by type of case and/or age category for relevance. 

Intermediaries work on a wide range of cases which have included the following:

  • murders witnessed by very young children and adults who have a learning disability
  • the sexual abuse of children by organized and disorganized networks of abusers
  • the sexual abuse of children by a relative
  • the sexual abuse of adults with a physical disability
  • the sexual abuse of adults with mental health issues
  • the attempted murder of elderly people with dementia
  • the trafficking of people with learning disabilities for the purposes of sexual exploitation
  • the physical and sexual abuse of adults with learning disabilities, either by a relative or in residential settings
  • the financial exploitation of elderly witnesses with dementia

Schizophrenia

A man with schizophrenia was the victim of a violent hate crime.

He gave a written statement to the police. An intermediary was asked to assess him. His symptoms included visual and auditory…

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Deaf Woman Assisted by Deaf Intermediary

Police officers visited a house where they found a young woman who had been kept in virtual slavery.

She was deaf and had had no exposure to language or education. An intermediary, who was…

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Asperger's Syndrome

A young man with Asperger's Syndrome walked onto a zebra crossing causing a driver to brake suddenly.

An argument ensued where the young man insisted that he was in the right as he was a…

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Defendant in Late Teens with Anger Management Issues

Andrew was in his late teens and had already experienced many difficulties through his life. Severe health problems, which had been poorly managed over the years, resulted in many hospital stays,…

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Child Witness with Autism

Eleven-year-old Vicky’s autism spectrum difficulties made it hard for her to fit in with other children: she was always on the outside of groups. She found it easier talking with grown…

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6 Year Old Girl

A six-year-old girl was punched so hard in her stomach that part of it burst and she nearly died.

The police officer was able to obtain accurate evidence assisted by an intermediary who…

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18 Year Old Charged on Two Counts of Sexual Assault

An eighteen-year-old young man had been charged on two counts of sexually assaulting the six year old grandchild of his foster father.

The young man's mother was an alcoholic and he was born…

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3 Year Old Girl as the Sole Witness / Prosecution

A three-year-old girl was the sole witness to the fatal stabbing of her mother.

An intermediary assessed the girl’s speech and language and made recommendations to the police on the best…

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Motor Neurone Disease Affecting Witness' Speech

Donald, a 52-year-old man, had Motor Neurone Disease which severely affected both his mobility and his speech.

On returning slowly along the pavement from the barber’s shop, he…

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Young Girl Using Visual Aids in an Alleged Sexual Abuse Case

Lucy was 6-years-old and attended a mainstream school. She needed to give evidence in court about alleged sexual abuse, having disclosed details some months before in a camera recorded …

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Woman with Cerebral Palsy and Speech Difficulties

Sheila, a 45-year-old woman with Cerebral Palsy, learning disabilities and living in supported accommodation, alleged that her purse had been stolen while she was out shopping. Sheila…

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Adult Witness with a Neurological Condition

Tom, aged 85, had a severe stroke which left him paralysed down his right-hand side. He struggled to talk except in single words and a few short phrases, and he had some hearing difficulties…

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