Friday at the premises of the Hospital of the State University of Haiti (HUEH) commonly known as the General Hospital, Pierre Richard Casimir, Minister of Justice and Public Security along with the First Lady Sophia Martelly, and Dr. Florence Duperval Guillaume, Minister of Health, attended the official ceremony of relaunch of the Medico-Legal Institute (IML) with representatives of CSPJ, the Bâtonnier of the Bar of Port au Prince, of Dean of the Faculty of Law and Economic Sciences of the State University of Haiti, activists of human rights organizations and representatives of the international community including the Deputy Head of the Minustah, Carl Alexandre.

Forensic medicine is medicine at the service of Justice, have recognized Me. Pierre-Richard Casimir and Dr. Florence D. Guillaume who are committed to continue to work towards strengthening the IML which will undoubtedly, contribute to the strengthening of penal justice in Haiti.

In his speech the Minister Casimir declared "Our penal justice system has long had recourse to the confession that has always been considered the queen of evidence. But the confession of the accused as evidence par excellence, has more than once been the subject of controversy. On the substance, its exact probative value is questioned. And what to say of the procedure for obtaining the confession ? Is it still consistent with respect for individual freedoms of the accused ? [...] It is therefore essential that the officers of Police, the Parquetiers and Judges Instructors employ the expertise of forensic experts to arrive at shed light on cases of suspicious deaths and help justice to establish the circumstances surrounding such cases.

[...] It becomes inconceivable that criminal justice decisions are taken under the influence of choice of unenlightened processes by scientific expertise. The magistrate can not claim to know everything and sometimes has to deal with other disciplines which would even be foreign to him, in order to motivate and make knowingly decision. The use of scientific expertise must be the norm in the search for evidence in the investigation.

[...] The forensics is not just applied to the dead. The coroner also acts on the living. As part of its mission, it is required to auscultate of living, and, in particular, victims of assaults. Likewise, the forensic expertise of the living is required by the penal judge in establishing any criminal offenses that would be committed by a practitioner in the framework of his professional activity."

Shortly after the ceremony, a tour of the institution's premises was organized, under the coordination of the Director of IML, for the participants. Recall that the IML was established in 2001 and it is only in 2012 that a presidential decree has devoted its existence.

HL/ S/ HaitiLibre