Responding to a False Confession Expert in Your Case

Apr 09, 2024

Oftentimes the defense will present a "false confession expert” to testify that the investigator obtained a coerced and/or false confession. We have published a number of articles describing the type of statements...

Direct questioning and its role in counterintelligence investigations

Jul 15, 2019

Reprinted with permission from Blue line magazine; written by Philip A. Mullenix

While driven by logic, direct questioning is an art-form that requires creative thought and methodical application

Counterintelligence agents and counterpart law...

The Non-Confrontational Approach

Apr 16, 2019

The Non-Confrontational Interview

John E. Reid and his colleague, Northwestern Professor of Law Fred E. Inbau, developed the non-confrontational interview as an integral part of any questioning of a subject in...

The Hillen Credibility Factors

Mar 01, 2019

Several government agencies use the Hillen Credibility Factors to help their investigators and decision makers assess the veracity and credibility of a subject’s statement, particularly in instances where there is one...

The Forensic Experiential Trauma Interview (FETI)

Jan 01, 2019

Research has demonstrated that brain functions and memory of victims of trauma, such as a sexual assault, are significantly affected by the event, and as a result, their behavior and statements may...

A Description of The Reid Technique

Nov 01, 2018

The Reid Technique is oftentimes just thought of and is frequently referred to as simply an interrogation process - it is much more than that. The Reid Technique is a structured interview...

Gang Crime Interrogation

Sep 01, 2018

Gang-related homicides and assaults are frequently motivated by revenge for acts committed by rival gangs against members of a suspect’s crew. Through effective theme development, an interrogator uses sound reasoning...

Human Trafficking Investigations: Interrogation Themes that Get Confessions

Jul 02, 2018

An astute investigator alert to the signs of human trafficking can launch a line of questioning designed to reveal the offender’s conduct

Human traffickers can abduct or lure susceptible individuals for many...

The Value of Behavior Provoking Questions - A Case Study

May 01, 2018

The investigative interview process in the Reid Technique is called the Behavior Analysis Interview (BAI). The BAI consists of three types of questions: Initial Questions designed to develop biographical information, establish rapport...

Clarifying Misrepresentations About Law Enforcement Interrogation Techniques

Mar 01, 2018

Over the years social psychologists, defenses attorneys and some academicians have offered a number of criticisms of current law enforcement interrogation practices, and, in particular, the Reid Technique. Some of these criticisms...

What Words Should I Use When I start an Interrogation?

Jan 01, 2018

The flexibility and effectiveness of the Reid Technique of Interviewing and Interrogation is what makes it the most widely used investigative interviewing technique in the world.

The Reid Nine-Steps of...

Factual Analysis

Nov 01, 2017

Factual analysis can be defined as estimating the probability of a suspect's guilt or innocence based on investigative findings. Each investigator uses factual analysis to narrow the scope of suspects - to...

The Fundamental Foundation of THE REID TECHNIQUE OF INTERROGATION®: Empathy and Understanding

Sep 01, 2017

The Reid Technique consists of a three-phase process beginning with Fact Analysis, followed by the Behavior Analysis Interview (which is a non-accusatory interview designed to develop investigative and behavioral information), followed by...

Cognitive Interviewing

Jul 01, 2017

Cognitive Interviewing

Cognitive interviewing is a memory retrieval procedure designed to enhance recall when interviewing a victim or witness. Unlike hypnosis, which involves placing the subject in an altered state of...

Using Open-ended Questions During the Investigative Interview (Part 2)

May 01, 2017

(See the March April 2017 Investigator Tip for Part 1)

Evaluating the Response to an Open Question

When relating an incident such as being the victim of a robbery or...

Using Open-ended Questions During the Investigative Interview (Part 1)

Mar 01, 2017

When evaluating an account, such as what happened to a victim, a suspect’s alibi, or what a witness saw or heard, the investigator should elicit this information by asking an initial open-ended...

Ten Do’s and Don’ts for Obtaining a Reliable Confession

Jan 01, 2017

Physical coercion, torture, duress, denial of rights, threats, and promises of leniency are the poison pills of legally admissible, reliable, and voluntary confessions. Obviously we should not engage in such behaviors or...

Positive Persuasion - Motivating the Subject to Tell the Truth

Nov 01, 2016

Positive persuasion consists of a variety of persuasive statements offered by the investigator to motivate, influence, and persuade the subject to want to tell the truth. The information developed in the...

When Co-Offenders are Being Interrogated Consider "Playing One Against the Other"

Sep 01, 2016

When two or more persons have collaborated in the commission of a criminal offense and are later apprehended for questioning, there is usually a nagging fear on the part of each participant...

Over 300 What's new page entries

Aug 01, 2016

p> Over the last 14 years we have posted over 300 entries on our "What's New" page at www.reid.com. For this July/August Investigator Tip we have listed many of them that you...

There is No Behavior Unique to Lying

May 01, 2016

People oftentimes associate specific behaviors with deception, such as lack of eye contact. But there are many reasons a person may not have eye contact with the individual whom they are speaking...