Innocence project
A false confession involves a narration of how and why a crime took place. It includes an admission to committing a crime, which the confessor did not commit. However, false confessions are difficult to establish, attributed to the fact that it is hard to prove the confessor’s innocence. False confessions can be categorized into different types. The first one includes voluntary false confession, whereby the confessor willingly gives a false confession, either due to little or no cohesion from the police. Another type of false confession is the compliant false confession. Here, a false confession is given to bring an interrogation to an end or as a response to receiving a reward for the made confession. Last is the persuaded false confession which is given by an innocent suspect who doubts his or her memory reliability and thinks that he or she committed the crime even though there is no such memory.
Certain categories of people including teenagers and individuals with mental illness are considered vulnerable suspects and therefore, have a higher likelihood of implicating themselves. These people make a false confessions, especially when under pressure during interrogation. Another reason why suspects give a false confession is attributed to the prolonged sleepless interrogations and trauma that forces innocent suspects to admit that they committed a crime.
How police officers avoid false confessions
One of the ways to prevent false confessions is by ensuring that the entire interrogation process is recorded. This allows the investigators to revisit the details and identify where the details of confession come from. This is crucial to determine if the confessor provided the confession. Another step involves preventing the police from threatening the suspects, which generally puts the defendants under duress to give a false confession. Another way to avoid false confession is by always conducting the interrogation of minors or individuals with mental challenges in the presence of a legal representative, guardian or a parent.
How the reading of Miranda warnings influence the likelihood of obtaining false confessions.
The reading of Miranda warning may lead to suspects making false confessions. This is linked to the suspect’s poor comprehension of Miranda warnings, coupled with the desire to comply. Besides, most of the defendants do not grasp the Miranda warning basic implications.
Works Cited
The Innocence Network . Celebrating 50 Years of Miranda. 13 June 2016. 20 July 2016 <http://www.innocenceproject.org/50-years-of-miranda/>.
The Innocence Network. False Confessions or Admissions. n.d. 20 July 2016 <http://www.innocenceproject.org/causes/false-confessions-admissions/>.
The Innocence Network . Preventing false confessions and wrongful convictions. 20 October
2008. 20 July 2016 <http://www.innocenceproject.org/preventing-false-confessions-and-
wrongful-convictions/>.
