The Role of Doctors in the Pre-Trial

The activities of the criminal justice system began with the commission of the crime and tries to social order is restored and the victim is entitled to the right with the transition from the stages of exposure of a crime, prosecution, investigation, trial and execution of the sentence. Throughout the steps above, the steps taken in the exposure of a crime, prosecution, primarily investigation have a significant role in discovering the truth. The realization of this goal is outside of the jurisdiction of the judicial authorities, and various experts, including doctors, help them. The question arises is that: the presence of doctors in the process of discovery, prosecution and preliminary investigations will affect the criminal process? Through the establishment and management of NGOs in the field of patients, they can participate in the detection of crimes against the patients. They can also independently inform prosecutors about crimes against patients and help initiate a criminal justice system intervention. In addition, the results of medical examinations on the records of the suspects' illnesses constitute an important part of the person's case file and help the judiciary to issue appropriate sentences. Additionally, doctors, according to their oath, are obliged to provide services to all individuals. Therefore, if the accused needs medical assistance and the judicial authority asks them, they will commit themselves to executing the order of the judiciary. Ultimately, the views of doctors can play an important role in discovering the truth and possibly leading to a reduction or deterioration of criminal responsibility. This article attempts to analyze the most important effects of the role of doctors in the pre-trial stages (exposure of a crime, prosecution and preliminary investigations) with using a descriptive and analytical method and based on the legal articles. Please cite this article as: Moghaddasi MB, Yazdani J. The Role of Doctors in the Pre-Trial. Iran J Med Law 2019; 13(48): 65-90.