Colorado Criminal Law – Tricks Police Use To Get You To Confess – The Interview Room

By H. Michael Steinberg Colorado Criminal Defense Lawyer

Colorado Criminal Law – Tricks Police Use To Get You To Confess – The Interview Room Even the interview room itself is designed to play a role in wearing down the target, whether that target is the suspect, a witness, or even possibly the alleged victim of a crime.

Designing The Interview Room – Where The Interrogation Takes Place

Criminal psychologist will tell you that the environment of an interrogation is the single most critical factor in obtaining a confession or incriminating statements from a suspect.

Old movies where the police pick up a suspect and take him “downtown” are legion. The reason? .. to get the suspect onto their “turf.” To that end – the interview room is designed to small, say 10 feet by 10 feet. It will have a table and two – sometimes three chairs.

The interview will most likely not have any windows, no phone, no artwork .. Nothing to distract from the psychological pressure being placed on the suspect.

Strategic Placement Of The Suspect in The Interview Room

The police will carefully place the suspect in one corner of the room facing the door. The door will be directly behind the police interrogator.

The police officer will make certain he or she has a clear view of the suspects entire body – maintaining that view throughout the interview. Much “communication” is non-verbal and a suspect’s body language is used to control the direction of the interview by the well trained interrogator.

The interrogator will favor sitting at a corner of the table to maintain a 45 degree angle during the interrogation.

Sometimes the officer will use “props” such as crime scene photographs or alleged “statements” from other witnesses to trick the suspect into incriminating himself.

Why Go Through Such Efforts To Control The Police Interrogation Environment?

Why take such pains to control the environment? The reasons are simple – the intent is to remove any vestige of comfort, familiarity, or distraction…. to achieve total physical and psychological control in such an environment.. to carefully compel the person being questioned to “let down their guard.”

A word to the wise – be aware of your surroundings when dealing with the police – in an investigation – remove the teaching of your mother and father that the “police are your friends.” The police are committed to their job, catching the criminal – and they will not stop in the pursuit of that goal. When you are being interrogated as a target or suspect in a criminal act, the police will do everything in their power to obtain your confession.

Colorado Criminal Law – Tricks Police Use To Get You To Confess – The Interview Room