Book excerpt: Updated for its Second Edition, this text provides the information emergency departments need about the medicolegal aspects of treating victims of violence, motor vehicle accidents, sexual assault, child abuse, elder abuse, and intimate partner abuse. It offers detailed guidelines on interviewing and examining the victim and collecting, preserving, and documenting evidence for legal proceedings. The book includes a chapter by an attorney on expert testimony and a chapter on forensic photography. A full-color photo insert illustrates injury patterns and key evidence. This edition provides increased coverage of motor vehicle accidents, DNA evidence, and new drugs of abuse.