The class addresses 5th, 6th and 14th amendment issues, as well as issues involving Miranda which come up during interviews and interrogations. The attendees will be instructed in ways to avoid mistakes in these areas which could potentially endanger the admissibility of statements, admissions, and confessions in court. This portion of the class is valuable information for new detectives and a good review for veteran detectives.

The class addresses characteristics of effective interviewers and interrogators, and how these characteristics can be best utilized for effectiveness in the interview/interrogation room. The class will address interrogation room myths and Hollywood stereotypes which are actually detrimental to effective interviews and interrogations.  

Attendees will be introduced to the process of conducting complete and thorough interviews in an organized consistent manner, and how this will help the attendee effectively obtain accurate and complete information, as well as the importance of empathy and rapport building during both the interview and interrogation processes. 

The class addresses the differences between interviews and interrogations, the purposes of each, and what steps to take when interviews turn into interrogations. The class addresses the issues of verbal and physical indicators of deception, and how the interpretation of what is said and physical actions can be helpful or detrimental to the interview and interrogation processes, depending on how these characteristics are read by the interviewer. 

Captain Babcock will instruct attendees on the process of interrogation beginning with rapport building and Miranda warnings, moving into the interview portion, transitioning to actual interrogation and overcoming resistance to confessions. The class will also address the effective closing of the interrogation and how to make the interrogation and confessions most effective for prosecution.

Actual case studies from Captain Babcock’s work as an investigator will be utilized as examples during instruction and will encourage class interaction while working through the process of the investigations from beginning to end.  

• Addressing the two times an investigator is most at risk of failure—crime scene & interrogation room
• Understanding the qualities of a good interviewer
• Identifying the “currency” a detective deposits and withdrawals in every interview and interrogation—respect
• Understanding the two methods of lying—active deception & passive deception
• Identifying the number one thing to remember during interviews and interrogations
• Identifying the three questions the detective will need to answer during any interview or interrogation
• Understanding the ratio of input between the subject and the detective during an interview vs during an interrogation
• Identifying the six parts of the interrogation
• Addressing the two things necessitating Miranda
• Identifying the two primary concerns of the interrogation room
• Understanding why there are physical responses to emotions such as stress, anger, fear or sorrow
• Defining and addressing “proxemics”
• Identifying the types of false confessions