her vagina. (Firm statement of guilt) Now, what could you have stuck in her vagina? Did you stick your penis in her? (Lead question)
S: I didn’t stick anything in her.
I: Or did you just touch her? (Milder alternative)
S: Well, I touch my daughter, but I don’t go around touching her, ah, ah, private parts.
I: John, did you deliberately get into bed with your daughter, or . . .
S: I’m not a pervert, man.
I: . . . did you come home after you had too much to drink? (Alternatives) I don’t think you are a pervert.
(Deals with fear of label) But something happened. (Firm statement of guilt) Did you deliberately get in bed with her, or was it an accident? (How/Why alternative)
S: I didn’t deliberately do anything man, that’s what I’m trying to tell you.
I: (Interrogator ignores denial) I don’t think you are a pervert. That’s why we’ve got to get this resolved.
We don’t need people running around saying you’re a pervert, if in fact you’re not. (Argument to tell truth) Now . . .
S: Wait a second. Is this going to be in the paper?
I: I hope not. Not if we can get it resolved, but what’s going to happen if we can’t get it resolved? (Alle
viate fear/turns fear to motivate suspect in proper direction)
S: Well, I know people that will say, well you know, that . . .
I: John, I don’t care what people will say, I know what people are saying, and we’ve got to get this
resolved. Now, if you did go home after you were out drinking that night, and did get in bed with her, that’s something else. It may not be right, but it’s something else. (Possibility of How/Why)
S: I drink sometimes before I go there, but how do you know it was me? Maybe it was my wife, or one of
her boyfriends.
I: John, your daughter says it was “Daddy.” Does she call your wife “Daddy?” (Deals with objection) Now
something happened. (Firm statement of guilt) Was it deliberate? (Leading question)
S: I didn’t deliberately do anything.
I: That’s what I think. I don’t think you’re some kind of pervert.
S: My daughter has a big imagination. She probably made the whole thing up. She’s a lot older than what
she looks, and . . .
I: And, that’s my point. She is a lot older than what she looks. And maybe you did go home after you
were drinking, and wasn’t thinking, and had a weak moment, and . . . (Possibility of How/Why)
S: I’m not going to say . . . I’m not going to say to you . . . I didn’t do anything deliberately.
I: John, was it an accident? (Leading question)
S: Just laying down in bed with my daughter? Sure, that could happen. I’ll admit one thing, that I
could’ve laid down next to her, because I love my daughter, and . . .
I: Did you come home drinking one day last week and get in bed with your daughter and . . . ?
S: I can’t remember if I was drinking, but I could have got in bed with her. I’ll admit one thing.
I: Then what happened? John, you were drinking, came home, got in bed with your daughter, realized
how old she looked, had a weak moment, and inserted something into her vagina. (Firm statement of guilt)
Couldn’t that have happened? (Leading question)
S: Anything could’ve happened when I’m drinking. I’m a member of AA. I’m sure you checked that out,
but I did what they said to do, and you’re sitting here making accusations, and . . .
I: John, something happened. Now, either you deliberately sexually molested your daughter, or you
went home after you had been drinking and had a weak moment. (Strong vs. mild alternative) Is that what
happened, John? Did you have a weak moment? (Leading question)
S: This is a nightmare! This is a nightmare!
I: Well, I’m here to help you wake up and put that nightmare to rest! (Deal with objection) Now, either it
happened deliberately, or accidentally. (Alternative)
S: Nothing happened deliberately. (Suspect shows interest in alternative)
I: Then it was an accident? (Leading question)
S: Do you hold your daughter?
I: John, did you do it once, or has it happened before? (Alternative)
S: I can’t remember.
I: You can remember.
10. MOVE IN CLOSE AND PRESS FOR THE CONFESSION
265
S: You’re asking me to remember when I’m drinking.
I: I don’t think you remember everything, detail for detail, but, I think you remember what happened. I
think you feel bad about what happened. (Argument to tell truth)
S: I feel bad. I . . .
I: Since this has happened I bet you feel like you have a rock sitting right in the middle of your chest.
Now is the time to get that rock off your chest. Something happened. I’ve accepted it, and you have to accept it. Now is the time. (Argument to tell truth)
S: I feel bad. I feel real bad, and . . .
I: Now is the time you can feel better. You can get that rock off your chest. (Argument to tell truth) Was it deliberate, or was it accidental? (Alternative)
S: Was what deliberate?
I: I’m going to explain something to you John. You’re an intelligent young man. You’re an intelligent
young man. I can tell that just by talking to you. (Compliment)
S: That’s why I came here.
I: I believe that is why you came here. You are an intelligent young man, and you want this to be resolved.
That’s why you came here. You’re intelligent enough to recognize that when a person does something wrong,
and they’re intelligent enough to admit to it, then you can say, okay, this person had a weak moment, and he is sorry for it, and it probably won’t happen again. On the other hand, if you have someone that did something wrong, and won’t admit to it, won’t say they’re sorry for it, then they’ll probably do it again, and that’s the kind of person that has to be severely punished. That’s the kind of person . . . (Argument to tell truth)
S: What happens to someone who’s done something like this? (Buy sign)
I: Well, it depends on what happened.
S: But, I don’t know what happened.
I: John, you do know what happened. You’re the only one in this room that knows exactly what hap
pened. I know you haven’t told the truth, and so do you. (Firm statement of guilt) But only you know if
you stuck your penis in her, or if it was just your finger. Only you know if it happened more than once,
or just once, only you. (Alternatives)
S: I touched her a couple of times, but not sexually.
I: John, was this the first time? (Leading question)
S: You listened to her story, now listen to mine.
I: I don’t want to hear your story. I want to hear the truth! (Shut down denial) Was it the first time? (Lead ing question)
S: Oh God! Oh God!
I: God doesn’t want to hear your story. God has his own problems. God helps those who help them
selves. (Argument to tell truth)
S: I am helping myself. I do help myself.
I: Help yourself now. Tell the truth. Something happened. (Firm statement of guilt) Was it the first time?
(Leading question)
S: I touched her. It wasn’t sexual. I may have laid down next to her and put my arm around her, but . . .
I: (Interrupts to shut down denial) John, Marianne said you put something in her vagina, and I believe her.
(Firm statement of guilt) Was it your penis or your finger? (Alternative)
S: She exaggerates. She’s a lot older than 4 years old . . .
I: I don’t think it was your penis . . .
S: I’m glad you believe me.
I: But, I kn
ow something happened. John, could you have come home drinking, got in bed with Mar
ianne, thinking it was your wife, had a weak moment, and then come to your senses? (How/Why) Couldn’t
that have happened? (Leading question)
S: Maybe she’s trying to side with my wife and gang up on me!
I: John, would your 4 year old daughter gang up on you? (Interrogator denies suspect’s argument)
S: No.
I: She loves you, and you love her. Don’t you?
S: Yeah.
I: That’s why I don’t understand why you would make her go through what she’ll have to go through
if you don’t tell the truth. What’s going to happen if your daughter has to testify? Has to take the stand
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18. THE INTEGRATED INTERROGATION TECHNIQUE
and testify to what she perceives happened? What’s going to happen then? Do you want your daughter to
have to go through that? (Argument to tell truth) Something happened, John. (Firm statement of guilt) Did
you stick your penis in her, or was it your finger? (Alternative) Was it the first time? (Leading question)
Get it over with. You don’t need a rock on your chest. It doesn’t have to go any further. (Argument to tell
truth) Was it your penis or finger? (Alternative) Were you drinking that night? Is that what happened?
(Leading question)
(Note: Increase of interrogator’s uninterrupted dialogue indicates the suspect is listening
and thereby showing a “Buy” sign.)
S: I’m not saying it was intentional.
I: Was it the first time? (Leading question)
S: If it happened it was an accident. What’s going to happen to me? (Buy sign)
I: It depends on what happened. Were you drinking that night? (Leading question)
S: Yeah. What’s going to happen to me? (Buy sign)
I: Did you put your penis in her or was it your finger? (Alternative)
S: It was my finger. I don’t want you to think it was my penis. What’s going to happen?
I: Did this happen more than ten times, or more than five?
S: I don’t know. It couldn’t have been more than ten.
I: I want to shake the hand of an honest man. (Shakes hand and seals deal) Now, tell me what happened.
S: (Now suspect tells in detail what happened)
Previously, we shared the FAINT interviews with you of four suspects in a case involv-
ing arson. After the interviews, suspect 4 was fingerprinted, asked to go wash his hands,
and then returned. As he walked back into the interview room, the detective held a magni-
fying glass as he made comparisons between the suspect’s fingerprints and a partial print
found on the match used to ignite the fire. The detective at this time had very little experi-
ence conducting interrogations, though he had just completed a 3-day seminar on FAINT
and the Integrated Interrogation Technique. The following is the actual interrogation of
the suspect with our critique, which is meant to identify the strong and weak points of
the interrogator’s presentation.
After the suspect sat down and watched the detective making the comparison of finger-
prints, the detective suddenly turned to the suspect and began:
I: John, do you want to tell me why?
S: It wasn’t me, sir.
Comment: While this statement does make a strong insinuation that the fingerprints
match, and therefore the detective knows the suspect started the fire, it is not a hook that
allows the suspect to just nod “Yes” and it’s over. Instead, for the suspect to confess he would
have to tell the detective the entire event. This is too much to ask so early in the interview.
I: John, why?
S: (No response)
Comment: The fact that the suspect is silent to a direct accusation tells the detective he
can be pretty sure he has the perpetrator, however, again it does not allow for the suspect
to nod “Yes” to confess.
10. MOVE IN CLOSE AND PRESS FOR THE CONFESSION
267
I: Do you know how a fire kills people? In just a few seconds that fire could have put out enough deadly
gases to have killed everyone in the store. Did you know that?
S: (No response)
Comment: The role of the interrogator is to reduce fear of punishment and increase the
desire to confess. By talking about “killing” people the interrogator has done the opposite.
He could, however, make this work for him if he uses it as a strong alternative with a
weaker one: “John, did you set that fire to kill people, or am I right, did you just set a little
fire to show the manager you are a good employee?”
This is the second time the detective has made a strong assertion and the suspect has not
made a denial, again confirming the suspect is deceptive. The detective failed to invade
space in both cases where the suspect showed weakness.
I: John, I can go back and scientifically prove that fire was not as old as you would like us to believe. The fire load. John, I’m an arson investigator with the city police department. I’m a state certified police officer and a state certified fire fighter. I do this for a living. I see fires all the time. I’ve been a fire fighter for the past 8 or 9 years. I’m not someone who just fell out of the apple tree yesterday. Have you ever seen someone burned in a fire? Have you ever seen a charred body?
S: No, sir.
Comment: The detective increases his credibility by telling the suspect of his background
and experience. However, he goes back to his strong concepts of death.
I: Do you know what happens first? It’s not the fire that kills people most times, it’s the toxic gases. This chair I’m sitting on of foam rubber puts out enough hydrogen cyanide to kill us both that quick (snaps fin
gers). John, I think . . . I know that last night you and the manager had an argument.
S: It wasn’t an argument, he just corrected me.
I: Okay, he corrected you, and you thought, well, he’s kind of down on me right now and I’ll show him I
can do something good.
Comment: The detective begins to develop his first “how and why.”
S: That’s why . . .
I: (Holds up hand like traffic cop) No, no, so anyway you just said to yourself I’ll set a little fire here so he can see I am good, I am worthwhile; his confidence will be restored in me.
Comment: The detective shuts down denial and continues his “how and why.”
S: (No response)
I: John, nobody means to hurt anybody, and I think you’re like that.
Comment: This would have been much more effective as, “John, some people do things
like this to hurt people, but I don’t think you are that kind of person, are you?”
S: (No response)
I: You . . . apparently you must have a really lucky girl for a girlfriend. You’re wearing her ring around
your neck, right?
Comment: Attempts to compliment the suspect.
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18. THE INTEGRATED INTERROGATION TECHNIQUE
S: Yes, sir.
I: And . . .
S: Soon to be 1 year.
I: And that’s a lot going for you. That’s something to be proud of. Now . . . I’m glad for you. Now, just
think what would have happened if the fire had gotten out of control. You know what?
S: The whole store could have been lost and dead people.
I: Yeah, and did you know the sprinkler systems were turned off last night?
S: No, sir, I didn’t know that.
I: Yeah, so those sprinkler heads directly over the fire, they wouldn’t have done any good. . . . Just th
ink if you had not got hold of the manager, just at the right time . . . then what? What would have happened if you had not got a hold of him?
S: The fire would have spread more and I would have had to fight it myself.
I: Yeah, but how would you have been able to fight it?
S: With a fire extinguisher they got in the store.
I: But John . . . the thing is, fires are very unpredictable. I don’t think you wanted to hurt anybody. You
didn’t want to hurt anybody, did you?
Comment: Excellent lead question.
S: I don’t want to hurt people. I ain’t that kind of a guy.
Comment: There is a good chance that had the detective now said, “And I think I am
right, that you didn’t want to hurt anyone yesterday. That you just set a small fire to show
the manager you were a good employee. That’s what it was, right?” the suspect would have
nodded “Yes” and the interrogation would have been over.
I: Yeah, and I don’t think you’re that kind a person. I think, yeah, that you’re the kind of guy that wants
to do a good job and everything. And all of us, every now and then has a bad day. I have a bad day, Mr.
Gordon has a bad day.
Comment: Detective begins to introduce a new “how and why.”
S: (Touches nose)
Comment: Suspect touches his nose, nonverbally telling the detective he does not like
this concept; however, the signal goes unnoticed and meets resistance.
I: And it just so happens that yesterday was a bad day for you, right?
S: Yesterday wasn’t a bad day for me.
I: Yeah, well, yesterday was a bad day for you because the manager, as you put it, had to correct you.
And up until then you had a spotless work record, right?
S: Yes, sir.
I: You never had to be talked about . . . talked to about anything, right?
S: No, sir.
I: And yesterday, getting talked to, it probably upset you, right?
S: Yesterday, it . . . I’m used to getting corrected by teachers, so . . .
I: Well, (puts up hand like traffic cop) this isn’t school John, this is work! And yesterday you got corrected by the manager. And the thing is John, the fire, why?
S: (No response)
10. MOVE IN CLOSE AND PRESS FOR THE CONFESSION
269
Comment: Suspect again shows weakness; however, there is no invasion of space.
I: Why? Why’d you do it?
Nathan J Gordon, William L Fleisher Page 39