Competence to Confess tests

Question 1

Which factors should evaluators focus on regarding competence to confess?

Answer 1

-person-centered factors
-situational factors
-waiver of rights was “knowing” and “intelligent”
-was confession “voluntary”
-were any techniques used that cause false confessions

Question 2

What does “knowing” and “intelligent” mean in confessions?

Answer 2

-understand Miranda warnings (middle school reading capacity)
-have the intellectual capacity to do so
-psychosis is not correlated with understanding
-does defendant understand definitions and applications of Miranda?
-does defendant understand the consequences of waiver? did they have a choice not to sign?
-Grisso (1981) Instruments for Assessing Understanding and Appreciation of Miranda Rights
-juveniles and intellectually challenged individuals are most susceptible, but not necessarily involuntary

Question 3

What 4 measures make up Grisso’s (1981) Instruments for Assessing Understanding and Appreciation of Miranda Rights?

Answer 3

1. Comprehension of Miranda Rights (CMR)
2. Comprehension of Miranda Rights-Recognition (CMR-R)
3. Comprehension of Miranda Vocabulary (CMV)
4. Function of Rights in Interrogation (FRI) (includes right to avoid self-incrimination)
   -both juvenile and adult norms

Question 4

What is the Miranda Rights Comprehension Instrument?

Answer 4

-Grisso, 2012 update to 1981 test
-1981 and 2012 versions use depends on age, intellect, warning provided
-Grisso instruments do not include response style

Question 5

What is the Standardized Assessment of Miranda Abilities (SAMA)?

Answer 5

-Rogers (2012)
-5 measures, used with adults
1. Miranda Comprehension Template (MCT)
2. Miranda Quiz (MQ)
3. Miranda Vocabulary Scale (MVS)
4. Miranda Acquiescence Questionnaire (MAQ)
4. Miranda Reasoning Measure (MRM)

Question 6

What is the Gudjonnsson Suggestibility Scale?

Answer 6

-measures defendant’s response to authority figures
-concerns the “voluntariness” of confession