# First Do Know Harm, LLC > Independent medical-forensic expert review and testimony in sexual assault and SAFE/SANE > examination, non-fatal strangulation, intimate partner violence, and child abuse cases, > for both prosecution and defense. The practice of Benjamin O. Weger, MD, FAAP — > a board-certified pediatrician and forensic healthcare examiner based in North Carolina, > retained nationwide and overseas. ## The expert Benjamin O. Weger, MD, FAAP. Board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics in General Pediatrics (2014) and Adolescent Medicine (2020). MD, Indiana University School of Medicine. Licensed in North Carolina and Indiana. Forensic training includes the Defense Health Agency Forensic Healthcare Examiner course (2023), contributions to drafting the DHA Forensic Healthcare Procedure Manual (2020), Child First forensic interviewing, and a five-course progression at the Training Institute on Strangulation Prevention beginning in 2022. He has performed and supervised medical-forensic examinations since 2019 and has consulted and testified in proceedings across the United States and overseas since 2022, retained by both defense and government. He accepts engagements from both defense and government, applying the same standards and the same fee structure in either case. ## Qualifications A summary CV is published at https://firstdoknowharm.com/qualifications.html (board certification, education, forensic training, consultation history, teaching, publication). Full CV and fee schedule on request. ## Services The homepage (https://firstdoknowharm.com/) is a gateway offering three engagements: [Expert witness consultation](https://firstdoknowharm.com/expert-witness.html), [Training & education](https://firstdoknowharm.com/training.html) for examiners, attorneys, and medical-legal personnel, and free [emergency preparedness & medical training for laypersons](https://sandhillsreadiness.org) through Sandhills Readiness. - Independent records and case review (medical records, examination documentation, photographs, peer-reviewed literature) - Written expert reports - Deposition and pretrial interviews - Expert testimony at trial, in the United States and overseas ## Practice areas - [Sexual assault & SAFE/SANE exam expert witness](https://firstdoknowharm.com/sexual-assault-safe-exam-expert-witness.html): a normal exam is common after assault and neither confirms nor excludes it - [Non-fatal strangulation expert witness](https://firstdoknowharm.com/strangulation-expert-witness.html): most non-fatal strangulation leaves little or no external injury - [Intimate partner violence expert witness](https://firstdoknowharm.com/intimate-partner-violence-expert-witness.html): injury patterns in context; consistency is not causation - [Child abuse expert witness](https://firstdoknowharm.com/child-abuse-expert-witness.html): the differential, the mimics, and the limits of pediatric findings ## For attorneys - [For prosecutors](https://firstdoknowharm.com/for-prosecutors.html) - [For the defense](https://firstdoknowharm.com/for-defense.html) ## Training & teaching [Training & teaching](https://firstdoknowharm.com/training.html): forensic medical education for examiners (SANE/SAMFE programs), attorneys and trial teams, multidisciplinary teams, and clinicians. Dr. Weger has led the Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Examiner annual training series at Womack Army Medical Center since 2019 and lectures trial counsel on expert-witness utilization. Formats: in-person lectures and workshops, live webinars, and custom simulation-based training cases with instructor materials; self-paced online courses are in development. Dr. Weger also teaches emergency preparedness and emergency medical skills to laypersons and prepared citizens. He is a Stop the Bleed Instructor certified by the American College of Surgeons and has taught three courses at the Active Self Protection (ASP) Conference in 2025 and 2026: Stop the Bleed Parts I and II and a strangulation and grooming awareness class. Free community trauma-response and preparedness courses are offered through Sandhills Readiness (https://sandhillsreadiness.org); conference and organization bookings run through the practice. ## Articles All articles are indexed at https://firstdoknowharm.com/articles.html. Articles for professionals (attorneys, examiners, clinicians): - [Delayed and Hidden Injury After Non-Fatal Strangulation](https://firstdoknowharm.com/delayed-hidden-injury-non-fatal-strangulation.html): in published case series, most non-fatal strangulation leaves little or no visible injury; what absent marks do and do not establish - [Why a Normal Exam Is Common in Child Sexual Abuse](https://firstdoknowharm.com/normal-exam-common-child-sexual-abuse.html): a normal genital exam is the most common finding in children evaluated for suspected abuse, even after a disclosure - [Why Bruises Cannot Be Reliably Dated by Their Color](https://firstdoknowharm.com/bruises-cannot-be-reliably-dated-by-color.html): visual and photographic dating of a bruise to a specific time window is not supported by the peer-reviewed evidence - [How Often Adult Sexual Assault Exams Show Genital Injury](https://firstdoknowharm.com/genital-injury-rates-adult-sexual-assault.html): most adult sexual assault complainants have no genital injury on examination, and genital injury also occurs after consensual intercourse - [Bruising in Infants Who Are Not Yet Mobile](https://firstdoknowharm.com/bruising-in-infants-who-cannot-walk.html): accidental bruising is rare in infants who cannot yet cruise or walk, and the peer-reviewed evidence supports evaluating such bruises for sentinel injury - [Head Injury from Short Falls in Young Children](https://firstdoknowharm.com/head-injury-short-falls-young-children.html): short household falls are a common history in child head-injury cases, and the peer-reviewed evidence bounds fall height, injury patterns, and fatality risk Articles for the public (lay audience, same evidence standard): - [Why Bleeding Control Is the CPR of Trauma](https://firstdoknowharm.com/bleeding-control-cpr-of-trauma.html): severe bleeding can kill in minutes before EMS arrives; the evidence behind Stop the Bleed and the evidence on tourniquet use and its risks - [Strangled, but No Marks? Why That Doesn't Mean No Danger](https://firstdoknowharm.com/strangulation-no-marks-still-dangerous.html): in a 300-case prosecution series most victims had little or no visible injury; why the danger can still be internal and delayed, and which symptoms need emergency care ## Contact Email info@firstdoknowharm.com or call (812) 236-7027 with the jurisdiction, any relevant deadline, and the medical question (see https://firstdoknowharm.com/contact.html). Engagements begin with a conflict and fit check; no privileged material before the conflict check clears. Hourly rate with an upfront retainer; fee schedule on request. Forensic consulting is provided by Dr. Weger in his private capacity through First Do Know Harm LLC; opinions are his own and do not represent the Department of Defense, the Uniformed Services University, or the U.S. Government.