Forensic Medical Exams and Health Care for Sexual Assault Victims Who Are Minors: Who is Authorized to Consent?

Following a sexual assault, victims may have any number of things on their minds: their immediate safety, whether to contact law enforcement, whether to seek medical care, and more. They may also have concerns about confidentiality and whether disclosing information about the assault while accessing services will trigger other legal consequences, such as reports to social services or criminal charges for the perpetrator. For victims and the professionals who support them after an assault, a complex web of laws can make it challenging to understand victims’ options and when victims can exercise control over what happens next. The legal issues are especially complicated when the victim is a minor. In some instances, the context in which a professional works will also change how the law applies to the provision of services to a minor victim, mandatory reporting, and confidentiality.

This bulletin is organized into two parts that address related but distinct legal questions that arise in North Carolina about consent and the services that may be available to a minor victim after a sexual assault. Part One discusses whether a minor can consent independently to a forensic medical exam conducted to gather potential evidence related to the sexual assault. Part Two considers whether a minor can consent independently to certain health services that may be offered separately or at the same time as the forensic medical exam, such as prevention, testing, or treatment for sexually transmitted infections.