Justice, Crime, and Ethics (Braswell): Chapter 5: 83-92

1. Interrogations HW 83-90

2. From last class… • Confessions are the most powerful evidence for incrimination. • Most techniques for acquiring confessions, though legal, are unethical.

3. …to this class • Is it ethically wrong to use psychological interrogation? • YES (unless it is restrained) • Is it good police work to use psychological interrogation? • NO (unless it is restrained)

4. Utilitarianism and Interrogation • Under Deontological and Care Ethics, the psychological interrogation techniques commonly used by police officers are unethical. • Under Utilitarian Ethics, the psychological interrogation techniques commonly used by police officers are ethical.

5. Utilitarianism and Interrogation • Under Deontological and Care Ethics, the psychological interrogation techniques commonly used by police officers are unethical. • Under Utilitarian Ethics, the psychological interrogation techniques commonly used by police officers are ethical. ….or maybe the consequences are unhappy

6. Unhappy consequences: Conflicting Models Crime Control: Policing is about efficient and final outcomes of crime clearing and arrests. Psychological Interrogation expedites the final arrest and conviction and generates happy outcome and is ethical. Due Process: Policing is about doing justice and trusting the due process of the system to mete it. Psychological Interrogation undermines due process and thus generates an unhappy outcome and is unethical.

7. E.g. Reid Technique of Behavioral Analysis Most police are trained to spot deception and trickery: • When answering 15 questions, trained police look for deception cues such as: shortness of answer, trailing gaze, slouching, face and clothes grooming, etc. • Trained police are also told that such techniques give 85% accuracy.

8. E.g. Reid Technique of Behavioral Analysis • Deception cues used by the Reid Technique are also cues for nervousness due to being a suspect (innocent), drug effects, sleep effects, personal variables, etc. • Trained police are give 45 - 60% accuracy. Untrainedcivilians are 54% accurate in detecting deception.

9. E.g. Reid Technique of Behavioral Analysis: Problems! • The Reid Technique undermines due process because it creates a disposition in police to determine guilt, which SHOULD be determined by the courts. In addition, suspects are not presumed innocent, as is required by the police. • Trained police have undo confidence in their ability to discern deception. This generates more extreme forms of psychological interrogation than otherwise to secure a confession from an (obviously) guilty suspect.

10. Bigger Problem?Unethical Practices  Unethical Ethos If one is a practiced liar, developing techniques of deception to acquire a confession, then they are more likely to use lies in other areas of their police work. “By allowing and even encouraging behaviors that are generally condemned by society or prohibited in other areas of police work, policing runs the risk of creating a “slippery slope.” (85-6)

11. Unethical Practices  Unethical Ethos • If you lie to X (e.g. suspect), then you might lie to Y (e.g. fellow officer). • We have a tendency to do what we might do. • So, you will likely lie to Y (e.g. fellow officer).

12. Unethical Practices  Unethical Ethos • If you lie to X (e.g. suspect), then you might lie to Y (e.g. fellow officer). • We have a tendency to do what we might do. • So, you will likely lie to Y (e.g. fellow officer). UH….Slippery Slope arguments are totally invalid!!! If someone is gay then they might be a sexual deviant. Those who might be sexual deviants will engage in very devious sexual acts (pedophilia, bestiality, etc. So, gay people are likely pedophiles, etc.

13. Summary: Deception in Interrogation • Suspects are READ Miranda Rights (STAY SILENT!) • Psychological Interrogation techniques use deception to get suspects to SPEAK a confession. • One motivation for interrogation is that police believe strongly in guilt, which is misplaced due to poor training. • Police deception in the interrogation room my leak into the common room.

14. Summary: Deception in Interrogation • Suspects are READ Miranda Rights (STAY SILENT!) • Psychological Interrogation techniques use deception to get suspects to SAY a confession. • One motivation for interrogation is that police believe strongly in guilt, which is misplaced due to poor training. • Police deception in the interrogation room my leak into the common room.

15. Practical Reason for No Deception: Weak Confession FINAL ARGUMENT: The stronger the psychological interrogation to get a confession in the policing domain, the weaker the confession in the court domain. Defense attorneys can interview the defendant about the circumstances in which their confession was obtain, and the judge or jury may rule out the confession based on those circumstances.

16. Practical Reason for No Deception: Weak Confession The stronger the psychological interrogation to get a confession in the policing domain, the weaker the confession in the court domain. • “Coerced-compliant false confessions” might lead to a false confession, particularly if officer ‘minimizes’ punishment. • “Coerced-internalized false confessions” might lead to a false confession, particularly if manipulated by good cop/bad cop and they have serious fears of authority and serious joy at accommodation or faked evidence is suggested.

17. SUMMARY What is the job of policing? Crime Control: Policing is about efficient and final outcomes of crime clearing and arrests. Psychological Interrogation expedites the final arrest and conviction and generates happy outcome and is ethical. Due Process: Policing is about doing justice and trusting the due process of the system to mete it. Psychological Interrogation undermines due process and thus generates an unhappy outcome and is unethical.

18. No to Strong Psychological Interrogation Confessions are important for BOTH “crime control” and “due process” models of policing. So, a restrained degree of psychological interrogation should be allowed (restrained even for serious crimes). If STRONG forms of Psychological Interrogation are used, then false positives will occur, which undermines BOTH “crime control” and “due process” models of policing.

19. How many? If you had a choice in the matter, how many guilty suspects would let go to avoid wrongly convicting an innocent person? Free 2 guilty > Convicting 1 innocent Free 10 guilty > Convicting 1 innocent Free 100 guilty > Convicting 1 innocent Free 1000 guilty > Convicting 1 innocent