This is the first book of its kind on the market. It provides practical guidelines for electronically recording interviews and interrogations in addition to specific guidelines that will help insure that your interrogation and confession will stand up to the scrutiny of a judge, jury, defense or prosecuting attorney. Whether you electronically record interrogations or not this book will enhance the integrity of your interrogation and the suspect's confession. Electronic Recording of Interrogations is an indispensable reference for any department that is mandated by law to electronically record interviews and interrogations or decides on their own volition to do so. It is also an invaluable guide for prosecutors and judges who must deal with electronically recorded interviews and interrogations.


Topics discussed in this book include:

• The Pros and Cons of electronic recording
• The Physical and Technical Aspects of electronic recording
  • The type of camera and microphone to use
  • Where to place the recording equipment (overt vs covert)
  • The use of analog vs digital recordings
  • Proper room arrangement
  • How the camera angle may influence a judge or jury
  • What should be electronically recorded
  • Maintaining the integrity of the recordings and storage
• Miranda
  • The appropriate time to advise the suspect of Miranda
  • Documenting their understanding of their rights
  • How to handle situations when a suspect makes an ambiguous request for an attorney during the interrogation
• Investigator conduct
  • How to avoid making statements that may be viewed as an implied promise of leniency or an implied threat
  • Juries perception of investigator's conduct during an interview or interrogation
  • How to explain false statements made to the suspect
• Guidelines for recording
  • child abuse victim interviews
  • out-of-office interviews / interrogations
  • multiple suspect interviews / interrogations
  • multiple investigator interviews / interrogations
  • Juvenile interviews / interrogations
• Testimony
  • How to offer compelling testimony regarding the interview, interrogation and confession
  • How to explain interview and interrogation tactics to the court
• Overview of The Reid Technique(r)