THE GOOD-COP BAD-COP ROUTINE, THE
PRISONER'S DILEMMA, MAKING FALSE PROMISES
OF LENIENCY, OFFERING MORAL AND
PSYCHOLOGICAL JUSTIFICATIONS FOR THE
CRIME... POLICE OFFICERS USE A VARIETY OF
TECHNIQUES TO EXTRACT CONFESSIONS,
ADMISSIONS OF GUILT, AND/OR INCRIMINATING
STATEMENTS. HERE ARE 10 POLICE
INTERROGATION TECHNIQUES THAT YOU SHOULD
KNOW ABOUT -- FROM THE GENTLE AND SOFT, TO
THE MORE MANIPULATIVE, CONFRONTATIONAL,
AND COERVICE! FIRST, WE NEED TO DISTINGUISH
BETWEEN POLICE INTERVIEWS AND POLICE
INTERROGATION. INTERVIEWS AND
INTERROGATIONS ARE TWO DISTINCT AND YET
RELATED, SOMETIMES OVERLAPPING, CONSTRUCTS.
GENERALLY SPEAKING, THE MAIN OBJECTIVE OF
INTERVIEWING IS TO COLLECT INFORMATION,
AND TO FIND OUT QUOTE-ENDQUOTE THE TRUTH
OF WHAT HAPPENED. INTERROGATIONS ON THE
OTHER HAND, ARE CONDUCTED FOR ACCUSATORIAL
OF PURPOSES. THE OBJECTIVE OF THE
INTERROGATION IS TO EXTRACT
INCRIMINATING STATEMENTS, ADMISSIONS OF
GUILT, AND/OR CONCESSIONS. IN OTHER WORDS,
WHEN POLICE OFFICERS INTERROGATE A
SUSPECT, THEY HAVE A PRETTY GOOD IDEA THAT
THE SUSPECT IS GUILTY, OR AT LEAST, THEY
BELIEVE THE SUSPECT IS GUILTY BECAUSE THEY
HAVE ENOUGH EVIDENCE THAT POINTS TO THE
GUILT OF THE SUSPECT. THE POLICE WILL
ALMOST NEVER TELL YOU THAT THEY'RE GOING
TO INTERROGATE YOU, THEY WILL ALWAYS SAY
THAT THEY JUST WANT TO HAVE A WORD WITH
YOU, HAVE A CHAT WITH YOU, OR JUST ASK YOU A
COUPLE QUESTIONS IN ORDER TO TIE UP A
FEW LOOSE ENDS. IN FACT, MANY
INTERROGATIONS ACTUALLY START WITH
INTERVIEWING IN ORDER TO GET THE SUSPECT
TO TALK, TO GET THE SUSPECT TO GIVE UP HIS
OR HER RIGHTS, FOR THE POLICE OFFICER TO
ESTABLISH WHAT THEY CALL A BEHAVIORAL
BASELINE, AND FOR THE POLICE OFFICER TO
ESTABLISH RAPPORT WITH THE SUSPECT SO THAT
THEY CAN KEEP THE SUSPECT TALKING. ALL
RIGHT, WE'RE GETTING A LITTLE BIT AHEAD
OF OURSELVES HERE, LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT
SOME OF THE MOST COMMON STRATEGIES,
TACTICS, TECHNIQUES, WHATEVER YOU CALL
THEM, THAT POLICE USE TO EXTRACT
CONFESSIONS. NUMBER ONE: THE PRETEXT PHONE
CALL. THIS HAPPENS EVEN BEFORE THE
INTERROGATION, THE POLICE WILL ARRANGE
FOR THE ALLEGED VICTIM OR SOMEONE
RELATED TO THE VICTIM TO CALL YOU OUT OF
THE BLUE, SAYING SOMETHING LIKE -- IF YOU
APOLOGIZE FOR WHAT YOU DID, THEN WE WILL
NOT GO TO THE POLICE OR PRESS CHARGES. WE
JUST WANT TO HEAR YOU SAY THAT YOU'RE
SORRY ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED AND THAT YOU
DIDN'T MEAN TO HURT US... SOMETHING LIKE
THAT. AND OF COURSE, IF YOU APOLOGIZED, THEN
THE RECORDING OF THIS PHONE CALL WOULD
MOST LIKELY BE ADMITTED IN COURT AS YOUR
ADMISSION OF GUILT OR EVEN AS YOUR
CONFESSION.
THIS CAN HAPPEN EVEN BEFORE THE POLICE
INTERROGATE YOU,
THEY MAY HAVE ALREADY GOTTEN YOUR
INCRIMINATING STATEMENTS, ADMISSIONS OF
GUILT, OR CONFESSION THROUGH THIS PRETEXT
PHONE CALL. THE SECOND TECHNIQUE IS --
ISOLATION. WHEN IT COMES TO POLICE
INTERROGATION, THE FIRST THING THEY'RE
GOING TO DO IS TO ISOLATE YOU. THE POLICE
OFFICER WOULD TRY TO MAKE YOU FEEL
ISOLATED, ALONE, AND COMPLETELY POWERLESS.
THE INTERROGATION ROOM IS USUALLY VERY SMALL,
IT HAS NO WINDOW,
YOU CANNOT SEE OUT, THERE'S NOTHING ON
THE WALL, THERE'S NO POSTERS, NO PAINTINGS,
NO CLOCKS, NO NOTHING, WHICH MEANS THERE
IS NOTHING FOR YOU TO FIX YOUR EYES ON,
YOU WILL HAVE TO LOOK AT AND LISTEN TO
THE INTERROGATOR. MOST LIKELY YOU WILL BE
SEATED AT THE CORNER OF THE ROOM IN A
CHAIR THAT CANNOT MOVE
WHILE THE POLICE OFFICER WOULD BE SITTING IN
AN OFFICE CHAIR WITH WHEELS SO THAT THEY
CAN EASILY MOVE CLOSER TO YOU OR FARTHER
AWAY FROM YOU, DEPENDING ON THE SITUATION.
SOMETIMES THE POLICE OFFICER WILL PLACE
YOU IN THE INTERROGATION ROOM AND JUST
LEAVE YOU THERE FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD
OF TIME BEFORE QUESTIONING YOU.
THIS IS TO FURTHER ENHANCE YOUR SENSE OF
ISOLATION AND POWERLESSNESS. NUMBER THREE:
RAPPORT-BUILDING. FREQUENTLY, THE
INTERROGATION BEGINS RATHER PLEASANTLY. THE
POLICE OFFICER WOULD TRY TO ESTABLISH
RAPPORT WITH YOU IN ORDER TO GET YOU TO
TALK TO THEM. THEY WILL BEGIN BY ASKING
YOU CASUAL AND FRIENDLY QUESTION, THINGS
LIKE -- HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN LIVING IN
THIS TOWN? I SEE YOU'RE WEARING A
BASKETBALL HAD, WHICH TEAM DO YOU SUPPORT?
OH, REALLY? ME TOO. THE POLICE OFFICER MIGHT
OFFER YOU FOOD AND DRINKS, SOME POLICE
OFFICERS MIGHT EVEN GO THE EXTRA MILE
AND WEAR SIMILAR KIND OF CLOTHES AS YOU
IN ORDER TO EMPHASIZE SIMILARITY AND TO
ESTABLISH RAPPORT. THEY INTERACT AND CHAT
WITH YOU IN ORDER TO SEE WHAT YOU ARE
LIKE WHEN YOU ARE RELAXED AND TELLING
THE TRUTH IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH A BEHAVIORAL
BASELINE SO THAT LATER ALL THEY WILL BE
ABLE TO SENSE WHEN YOU'RE TENSE AND NOT
TELLING THE TRUTH. DURING THIS PORTION OF
THE INTERROGATION, CHANCES ARE YOU MIGHT
FEEL THAT THE POLICE OFFICER IS A
GENUINELY NICE PERSON AND A PLEASANT
CONVERSATIONALIST AND THAT YOU MIGHT
ACTUALLY FEEL THAT YOU REALLY ENJOY
TALKING TO THIS PERSON. THAT, OF
COURSE, IS WHAT THEY WANT YOU TO FEEL.
THAT IS EXACTLY THE OBJECTIVE OF THE
RAPPORT BUILDING PHASE OF THE
INTERROGATION. NUMBER FOUR: WAIVER OF
RIGHTS. AND NOW, AFTER YOU HAVE BEEN
CHATTING WITH THE POLICE OFFICER FOR A
WHILE, THE POLICE OFFICER WOULD SAY
SOMETHING LIKE THIS --
WELL, LOOKS LIKE YOU WANT TO TALK TO ME...
SEEMS LIKE YOU'RE SOMEONE I CAN TALK
WITH OPENLY AND HONESTLY... I BET YOU'RE
QUITE EAGER TO TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED...
I AM REALLY
INTERESTED IN KNOWING YOUR SIDE OF THE
STORY... LET'S FILL OUT A FORM...
LET'S TAKE CARE OF THE PAPERWORK... THEY WILL
VERY NICELY AND VERY EASILY GET YOU TO
GIVE UP OR WAIVE YOUR RIGHT TO REMAIN
SILENT AND YOUR RIGHT TO LEGAL COUNSEL.
NUMBER 5: OPEN QUESTIONS. THE PLEASANT
TONE OF VOICE WILL MOST LIKELY REMAIN
THROUGHOUT THE OPEN QUESTIONS PORTION. THEY
WILL ASK YOU OPEN ENDED QUESTIONS TO
GENERATE AS MUCH INFORMATION AS POSSIBLE
SO THAT POTENTIAL INCONSISTENCIES
IN YOUR STATEMENTS CAN BE IDENTIFIED AND
USED AGAINST YOU.
POLICE OFFICERS CAN GET A PRETTY GOOD
SENSE OF WHEN YOU'RE TENSE OR NERVOUS
AND UNCERTAIN OR LYING ABOUT
THINGS. BECAUSE REMEMBER THEY HAD ALREADY
ESTABLISHED A BASELINE OF YOUR BEHAVIOUR
DURING THE RAPPORT BUILDING PHASE OF THE
INTERROGATION. THIS OPEN QUESTION
INTERVIEWING PROCESS CAN VARY IN TERMS
OF LENGTH OF TIME.
NUMBER SIX: ACCUSATION! THEN, THE
ACCUSATORY PROCESS OF INTERROGATION WILL
COME. THE POLICE OFFICER WILL ACCUSE YOU
OF THE CRIME CONFIDENTLY, UNWAVERINGLY, AND
REPEATEDLY. THEY WOULD SAY THINGS LIKE -- WE
KNOW FOR A FACT THAT YOU DID IT, I JUST
WANT TO UNDERSTAND WHY! AND YOU WILL NOT
BE ALLOWED TO DENY THINGS. THE POLICE
OFFICER WILL INTERRUPT ALL YOUR DENIALS.
THEY WOULD DISMISS YOUR DENAILS AS
IMPOSSIBLE AND CONTRADICTORY TO THE
FACTS OF THE CASE. ESSENTIALLY, THEY WILL
NOT ALLOW YOU TO EFFECTIVELY VERBALIZE
ANY COHERENT DENIALS OR DEFENSE. THEY WILL SAY
THINGS LIKE -- STOP DENYING IT! STOP
TALKING!
LISTEN TO ME! LISTEN TO ME NOW! I WILL
GIVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY TO TALK IN JUST
A MOMENT, BUT RIGHT NOW, IT IS VERY IMPORTANT
THAT YOU LISTEN TO ME CAREFULLY!
WHY DO THEY SAY THAT? WHY DO THEY TELL
YOU THAT YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO THEM? IT
IS NOT BECAUSE THEY HAVE SOMETHING
TERRIBLY IMPORTANT TO SAY. RATHER, IT IS
BECAUSE THE POLICE INTERROGATION
TECHNIQUE INDICATES THAT THE SUSPECT
SHOULD NOT HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO
VERBALIZE DENIALS. NEXT: FALSE EVIDENCE
PLOYS. THE POLICE OFFICER WILL CONFRONT
YOU WITH EVIDENCE AGAINST YOU, SOMETIMES
REAL EVIDENCE, SOMETIMES FABRICATED
EVIDENCE -- KNOWN AS A FALSE EVIDENCE PLOY.
THEY WILL SAY THAT THEY HAVE
YOUR FINGERPRINTS, OR THEY'VE GOT YOUR DNA, OR THEY
HAVE EYEWITNESS TESTIMONIES, OR THEY HAVE
SURVEILLANCE TAPES, OR THEY HAVE AUDIO
RECORDINGS -- THEY CAN SAY ANYTHING. IN FACT,
IT IS VERY LIKELY THAT THE POLICE
OFFICER WHO HAS BEEN QUESTIONING YOU HAS A
BIG FOLDER IN FRONT OF THEM WITH YOUR
NAME ON IT -- MAKING YOU THINK THAT THEY
HAVE ALL KINDS OF EVIDENCE AND PAPERS ON
YOU.
THEY MAY ALSO HAVE WITH THEM VIDEOTAPES
OR CD-ROMS, MAKING YOU THINK THAT THEY
HAVE VIDEO OR AUDIO RECORDINGS OF YOU.
THIS IS ALL
TO PUT PSYCHOLOGICAL PRESSURE ON YOU AND
THIS IS ALL LEGAL. THE POLICE IS LEGALLY
PERMITTED TO USE DECEIT WHEN
INTERROGATING SUSPECTS, REMEMBER THAT!
NUMBER NINE: THEMES. THE ACCUSATORY PROCESS
OF INTERROGATION WILL CULMINATE WITH
THE USE OF THEMES -- A BAD THEME AND A GOOD
THEME, BOTH OF WHICH WILL SAY THAT YOU
COMMITTED A CRIME THAT YOU'RE BEING
ACCUSED OF, BUT ONE SAYS THAT YOU DID IT
BECAUSE YOU ARE EVIL AND BECAUSE YOU
INTEND TO DO SO AND BECAUSE YOU WANTED
TO CAUSE HARM TO THE VICTIM,
WHEREAS THE OTHER THEME WILL SAY DID
IT BY ACCIDENT, OR YOU DIDN'T KNOW
WHAT YOU WERE DOING, OR YOU WERE DRUNK,
OR IT WAS SPUR OF THE MOMENT, OR THE
VICTIM DESERVED IT, WHATEVER...
IN OTHER WORDS, THE GOOD THEME OFFERS YOU
MORAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL JUSTIFICATIONS
FOR THE CRIME --
IT IS JUST AN ACCIDENT, IT'S JUST A
MISTAKE, WE ALL MAKE MISTAKES, IT'S NO BIG
DEAL, AND IF YOU GO ALONG WITH THE GOOD
THEME, THERE WILL BE A LESSER CHARGE AND
THE JUDGE WILL BE VERY LENIENT WHEN IT
COMES TO SENTENCING. THE GOOD THEME IS ALSO
KNOWN AS THE MINIMIZATION -- IT MINIMIZES
THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE CRIME AND IT
MINIMIZES THE CHARGE AND PUNISHMENT. THE
BAD THEME, BY CONTRAST, IS MAXIMIZATION --
MAXIMIZING THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE CRIME,
MAXIMIZING THE PUNISHMENT, THREATENING
YOU, SCARING YOU. THE CONTRASTING EFFECTS
OF MINIMIZATION AND MAXIMIZATION
ASSOCIATED WITH THE GOOD THEME AND THE
BAD THEME ARE VERY SIMILAR TO THOSE OF
THE GOOD COP AND BAD COP ROUTINE. ANY
RATIONAL PERSON IN THAT SITUATION WILL
CHOOSE THE GOOD THEME. CONFESSION: AS
SOON AS THE POLICE OFFICER SENSES THAT
YOU'RE ABOUT TO STOP RESISTING AND GO
ALONG WITH A GOOD THEME, BY THE WAY, THEY
CAN USUALLY TELL THIS BY YOUR BODY
LANGUAGE AND YOUR POSTURE. POLICE
INTERROGATORS ARE TRAINED TO SPOT THE
SO-CALLED SURRENDER POSITION SO THAT
THEY CAN TELL WHEN YOU ARE ABOUT TO
BREAK. AS SOON AS THEY SENT YOU'RE ABOUT
TO ADMIT GUILT OR CONFESS, THEY WILL
MOVE CLOSER TO YOU, THEY MIGHT PUT A HAND
ON YOU -- KIND OF NUDGING YOU ON AND
ENCOURAGING YOU. THEY WILL SAY THAT YOU
ARE DOING THE RIGHT THING -- YOU'RE DOING
THE RIGHT THING!
THIS IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO! THEY MIGHT
BRING IN ANOTHER OFFICER AT THIS POINT TO
ENSURE THAT YOU
DO NOT CHANGE YOUR MIND ABOUT
CONFESSING. THEY MAY ALSO TRY TO
CONVERT OUR CONFESSION INTO A WRITEN ONE --
ASKING YOU TO WRITE THINGS DOWN. THEY
MIGHT EVEN TRICK YOU INTO WRITING AN
APOLOGY LETTER TO THE VICTIM, TELLING YOU
THAT IT'S GOING TO HELP YOU BECAUSE IT'S
GOING TO MAKE THE JUDGE SEE THAT YOU'RE
SORRY. THEN, OF COURSE, THE APOLOGY LETTER
WILL ACTUALLY BE RECORDED AS A WRITTEN
CONFESSION.
SO, IN CONCLUSION, THESE POLICE
INTERROGATION TECHNIQUES HAVE BEEN SHOWN
TO BE VERY
VERY EFFECTIVE. THEY CAN EVEN LEAD AN
INNOCENT SUSPECT TO QUESTION THEMSELVES,
TO DOUBT THEIR OWN MEMORY, AND TO FALSELY
CONFESS TO A CRIME THAT THEY DID NOT
COMMIT.
THERE ARE MANY ACTUAL POLICE
INTERROGATION VIDEOS ON YOUTUBE -- SOME OF
THEM INVOLVE GUILTY SUSPECT, SOME OF THEM
SHOW FALSE CONFESSIONS BY INNOCENT
PEOPLE.
WHY DON'T YOU GO AHEAD AND WATCH A FEW
OF THESE VIDEOS? YOU WILL BE ABLE TO
RECOGNIZE THE DIFFERENT ELEMENTS THAT WE
HAVE DISCUSSED IN THIS VIDEO. HOW THE
POLICE OFFICER GETS THE SUSPECT WAIVE
THERE RIGHTS, HOW THE POLICE OFFICER
BUILDS RAPPORT WITH THE SUSPECT, THE
INTERRUPTIONS OF DENIALS, IMPLIED OR OVERT
SUGGESTION OF LENIENCY, IMPLIED OR OVERT
THREATS, MINIMIZATION AND
MAXIMIZATION, THE USE OF FALSE EVIDENCE
PLOYS, AND THE USE OF THEME. IF YOU PAY
CLOSE ATTENTION, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO SPOT
ALL THESE TECHNIQUES IN POLICE
INTERROGATION VIDEOS.  I HOPE YOU
FIND THIS VIDEO INTERESTING INFORMATIVE!
HAVE YOU EVER HAD ANY CITIZEN POLICE
ENCOUNTERS? WHAT'S YOUR IMPRESSION OF
YOUR LOCAL POLICE FORCE?
I'D LOVE TO HEAR EXPERIENCES AND THOUGHTS ON
THIS TOPIC, SO FEEL VERY FREE TO LEAVE A
COMMENT! AND AS USUAL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH
FOR WATCHING! PLEASE LIKE AND SUBSCRIBE! I
WILL SEE YOU IN MY NEXT VIDEO!... :-)
