Evaluating the Information during

Interrogation
• Interrogator should have ample opportunity during the interrogation to
observe and evaluate the physical mannerisms and emotional state of the
subject.

• Be alert for any signs of emotional disturbance or nervous tension. This may
indicate deception or guilt.

• Evaluate the information given by the suspect with respect to known facts, the
testimony of the victim and witnesses, and the physical evidence,

• Verify by other investigative means every pertinent statement.

What to remember when recording the
facts during interrogation?
• The skilled interrogator must train himself to remember correctly all the
pertinent facts and discrepancies noted during an interrogation. He must be
able to dos so without resorting to writing notes.

• Pencil and paper are kept out of sight. However, if the suspect mentions a
name or address, during the interrogation that the interrogator need to
remember, remove a notebook from his pocket, jot down the information, and
immediately replace the notebook out of sight.

• When possible, conduct the interrogation where a sound recording of the entire
interrogation can be made. Or conduct it where a stenographer or another
interrogee can be out of sight of the subject for the purpose of taking notes.
What to remember when recording the
facts during interrogation?
• Just as soon as the interrogation is over, make a complete set of notes. These
should cover the following:
1) Information gained
2) Reactions of the subject, and
3) Any discrepancies or gaps in his story that may require further
investigation.
 Why the interrogation should be
conducted in a formal environment?
• In challenging the processes of an interrogation where a statement
has been made by the accused, defense counsel will look for
anything that can be pointed to as an oppressive environment or
threatening conduct by the investigator.
 Stages of Interrogation
1) Formation – At this stage, the framework for how the
interrogation may be determined, includes the level of coercion
that is permitted or not allowed.

2) Preparation – At this stage, the interrogator learns the facts of the

case, the desired outcome and the constraints of the permitted
process.

3) Interaction – this is the main body of the interrogation when the

interrogator interacts with the respondent. This generally appears as
a series of questions and responses.
 Stages of Interrogation
4) Completion – in this stage, the interrogation is completed and the
body of information collected is analyzed. In legal situations, this
may include construction of the case for prosecution or defense.

As appropriate and feasible, the interrogator may return to the

previous stage to gather more information.
 General Rule for Interrogators
1) Prepare well. The effective interrogator is well-prepared.
• The person being interrogated may well be resistant to questions, so
interrogator need to have many alternatives at his call.

• The interrogator should find facts that will make him seem all-knowing.

• Find out about their (interrogees) background, their interests, what others
know, what they want and fear and so on.

• Build a list of core questions plus many other supplementary questions that
will nudge them towards critical answers.
 General Rule for Interrogators
2) Promote a path of least effort. The best interrogator never have to
raise their voice and the session seems to the other person to be
less an interrogation and more of a friendly conversation.
• Appear friendly and cooperative, even sympathetic to the subject.

• Do not give them easy reason to resist, at least at the beginning.

• When stronger methods are required, interrogators should always leave on

easy route in the direction they want to move.
 General Rule for Interrogators
3) Be methodical. Interrogation can be a long and intricate affair in
which answers can contradict one another and thing be left
undiscovered and unsaid.
• If the interrogator needs to build a legally watertight case, no stone can
be left unturned.

• Ask questions carefully. Record responses.

• Take time out to cross-check responses for consistency or otherwise.

• Repeat questions that have not been answered yet.

 General Rule for Interrogators
4) Be patient. When the other side does not want to answer the
interrogator’s questions, then they may use all kinds of resistance
tactics. Only when they know that these will not work will many
people resign and give the interrogator what he wants.
• Even when the other person is collaborative, he may not easily remember
what the interrogators are seeking or even understand that the interrogator
really wants of them.

• Give plenty of time for answers.

• Shoe that interrogators will never give up and will persist however long it
takes.
 Types of Question during Interview or
Interrogation
1) Open-ended questions are those that allow the suspect to reply
with longer, more detailed responses but lack direction from the
interviewer.
• These can be questions such as “What happened?” or questions that begin by
asking the suspect to “tell”, “explain” or describe” (TED) some event or
situation.

• It leads to an open, unrestricted answer.

• Open question elicit more free recall and this is found to be the most
accurate from of remembering.
Types of Question during Interview or
Interrogation

• The answers to open questions are more elaborate and more accurate.

• Examples are:
“Please tell me everything you remember”
“Kindly explain how the incident happened”
“Please describe the weapon used for person involved”
 Types of Question during Interview or
Interrogation
2) Closed Questions require more definite and distinct answers.
• Examples are:
“What time was that?” “Who
else was/were present?” “What
is his address?”

• Such questions allow more control over what the suspect says and are
useful where the suspect has left out information that interviewers or
interrogators need.
 Types of Question during Interview or
Interrogation
3) Forced-choice questions greatly restrict the possible answers to
those that you have determined.
• The question may be:
“Was it a rifle or a handgun?” when the weapon may have been a
shotgun.

• The suspect may simply pick one of the choices offered in order to please
the interviewer/interrogator or just move the questioning on.

• Interviewers on interrogators should avoid these as they do not suggest an

open mind, and because answers may lie outside those conceived of by the
interviewer or interrogator.
 Types of Question during Interview or
Interrogation
4) Multiple questions are those where the interviewer or interrogator
asks more than one question at the same time.
• This can easily confuse an interviewee or interrogee and make the answers
given equally confusing to the interviewer or interrogator.

• An example would be to ask:

“When did he say that?”
“What did he do?”
“Who else was/were present?”
Types of Question during Interview or
Interrogation
5) Leading questions are those that induced particular reply and
may be judged to have manipulated the interviewee or interrogee.
• An example would be to ask:
“You wanted to injure him, didn’t you?”

• They can lead the suspect to the point where they agree with what is being
said even when they are uncertain or have no clear memory.
 Types of Question during Interview or
Interrogation
6) Probing Questions are designed to encourage deep thought about a
specific topic.
• They are typically open-ended questions, meaning, the answers are
primarily subjective.

• Probing questions are intended to promote critical thinking as well as to get

the persons asked to explore their personal thoughts and feelings about a
particular subject.
 Is Probing Question similar with
Clarifying Question?
NO.
Reason: They are fundamentally different in both nature and intent.

Clarifying Questions are:

• Typically brief and are designed to clarify the subject being discussed.

• Based on facts/Simple questions of fact.

• Often provide valuable information that allow others to ask more effective
probing questions.
 Types of Question during Interview or
Interrogation
7) Loaded question is a form of complex question that contain a
controversial assumption.
• Such questions may be used as a rhetorical tool: the question attempts to
limit direct replies to be those that serve the questioner’s agenda.

• The traditional example is the question

“Have you stopped beating your wife?”
THEREFORE: whether the respondent answer yes or no, he will admit to having a wife
and having beaten her at some time in the past.
THUS, these facts are presupposed by the question, and in this case an entrapment,
because it narrows the respondent to a single answer, and the fallacy of many questions
have been committed/
 Types of Question during Interview or
Interrogation
8) Suggestive question is one that implies that a certain answer
should be given in response, or falsely presents a presupposition
in the question as accepted fact.
• Such a question distorts the memory thereby tricking the person into
answering in a specific way that might or might not be true or consistent
with their actual feelings, and can be deliberate or unintentional.

• For example:
“Don’t you think this was wrong?” is more suggestive than, “Do you think
this was wrong?”
The former may subtly pressure the respondent into responding “yes”,
whereas the latter is far more direct.
 Suspect or Subject Denials
The fear of the suspect or subject play a role in the decision to
confess, BUT the way the subject is approached by the
interrogator is undoubtedly a greater factor.

The role of the interrogator in the confrontation should be to

avoid forcing the subject into a position where he must deny guilt.
 Suspect or Subject Denials
The reason a suspect might deny guilt can be divided into three
factors, they are:
1) Environment. The timing of the interview or interrogation,
location, room setting, witness selection, and other factors all
may play a role in the subject’s decision to confess.
• The resources and the flexibility of the interrogator may dictate many of
these factors.
 Suspect or Subject Denials
The reason a suspect might deny guilt can be divided into three
factors, they are:
2) Suspect. Subjects will often deny because of past experience with
the criminal justice system.
• During a confrontation, the subject in making decisions about what the
interrogator knows and the evidence that may have been uncovered during the
investigation.

• Subjects react to the interrogator and his strategies, either reducing

resistance to a confession or increasing it.

• Other subjects simply use the denial to buy time to evaluate the
investigation and interrogator.
 Suspect or Subject Denials
The reason a suspect might deny guilt can be divided into three
factors, they are:
3) Interrogator. The interrogator makes the largest contribution to
the subject’s decision to deny.
• The interrogator’s word usage, plan of attack and confidence in the
subject’s guilt help to define the probable response of the subject.
 Interrogation Errors
Police interrogators make three kinds of errors –
misclassification, coercion, and contamination that can lead to false
confessions. These are:
1) Misclassification error. Police mistakenly believe that an innocent
person is guilty.

2) Coercion error. During the interrogation process, the police use

techniques that break down suspect’s resistance to guilt.
• This can include lying about the existence of evidence and telling the
suspect that punishment will be harsher if he does not confess.
 Interrogation Errors
Police interrogators make three kinds of errors –
misclassification, coercion, and contamination that can lead to false
confessions. These are:
3) Contamination error. Police the suspect’s statements and
shape add details to the make the statements more
confession to persuasive.