Crime Topic 3- Collecting Evidence

Question 1

What is likely to interviewed after a crime ?

Answer 1

Witness
Victim
Suspect

Question 2

What was Reid’s 9 step interrogation ?

Answer 2

Positive confrontation – tell the suspect that you believe without doubt that they are guilty.
2. Theme development – present themes that try to explain why the suspect is guilty in a understandable way.
3. Handling denials – never allow the suspect to deny their guilt.
4. Overcoming objections – objections the suspect makes should be used as a way of making the suspect acknowledge their guilt.
5. Procurement of suspects attention – use of personal space and eye contact should be used to make sure the suspect doesn’t become withdrawn or quiet.
6. Handling passive moods – if the suspect becomes upset or defeatist, use this as an acknowledgement that they are upset they have been caught doing the crime.
7. Present an alternative question – give the suspect 2 choices about what happened (both are guilty however one appears more understandable than the other).
8. Get the suspect to make an oral confession of the crime.
9. Convert the oral confession to a written confession that can be used in court.

Question 3

What did Gudjonsson believe wrong interrogation cause ?

Answer 3

False confessions

Question 4

What are the 4 factors that make a confession coercive ?

Answer 4

The defendant: is the person very young/old, low IQ or suffering from a mental disorder?
The arrest: was the suspect arrested suddenly, violently or in middle of the night? Were they
interrogated for long periods?
Mental/physical state: was the suspect stressed, anxious, ill or intoxicated at the time of the interview?
The interrogation: was it coercive, biased or leading in any way?

Question 5

Key features of the cognitive interview include:

Answer 5

Report everything
◼ Recall in different time order
◼ Mental context reinstatement
◼ Recall from a range of perspectives