Police Interrogation and Social Control

Police practices and perceptions regarding juvenile interrogation and interrogative suggestibility

“…In fact, false confession rates appear to be higher in samples of juveniles; in a descriptive study of 328 exoneration cases 44% of the juvenile exonerees falsely confessed compared with 13% of the adults, and among the youngest juveniles (aged 12-15 years) 75% falsely confessed (Gross, Jacoby, Matheson, Montgomery, & Patil, 2005). Research results strongly suggest that youth are more likely to provide unreliable reports (including false confessions) during suggestive questioning than adults (Ceci, 1994;Dunn, 1995;Leo, 1994;Loftus, 1979;Redlich & Goodman, 2003;Richardson, Gudjonsson, & Kelly, 1995). These statistics expose a pressing concern regarding the welfare of youth and raise the question of whether consideration is given to the increased suggestibility of youth and its impact on the reliability of their confessions.…”

“…Interrogation tactics that fail to consider youthful interrogative suggestibility and psychosocial immaturity, and thus decrease the reliability of young suspects' reports, include presentation of false evidence and minimization tactics (minimizing the seriousness of the crime) (Kassin, 1997;Redlich & Goodman, 2003;Russano, Meissner, Narchet, & Kassin, 2005), and repeated and leading questioning by unfamiliar authority figures (Ceci, 1994;Ceci & Bruck, 1993;Dunn, 1995;Leo, 1994;Quas, Schaaf, Alexander, & Goodman, 2000;Tobey & Goodman, 1992). For instance, Tobey and Goodman (1992) found that when children were questioned by either a neutral interviewer or a police officer, the children in the police condition gave fewer accurate statements and more inaccurate statements than children in the neutral condition.…”

Militarising the Mind: Assessing the Weapons of the Ultimate Battlefield

“…Influence is not limited to conflict, but is also used by numerous security services to massage information out of an obstinate person who possesses intelligence, or by police to illicit confessions from suspected criminals. Expert interrogators are trained to use subtle psychological manipulation and conditioning to create an environment where a person feels it is in their best interest to cooperate with investigators (Leo 1994). Interrogators employ a range of techniques to consciously manipulate the suspect's emotion, attitude and even thought-processes to make the suspect feel powerless in attempts to facilitate the flow of information (Royal 1976).…”

Rules in policing

“…United States Supreme Court decisions in the 1960s that enhanced due process-most notably Mapp, Miranda and Escobedo-arguably had little direct influence on police practices in the legal system, and indeed were significantly eroded through case law over time. Nevertheless, they had an indirect powerful influence through public culture, and mass media were pivotal in this public culture influence (Walker, 1980(Walker, , 1988(Walker, , 1993Leo, 1994Leo, , 1996aLeo, , 1996b. For example, the Miranda ruling requiring police to warn suspects of their right to silence became an icon in public culture, featured in both police drama series on entertainment television and in news accounts of human rights issues.…”