Educing Information: Interrogation - National Intelligence University

• The suspect or suspects (including personal background information;
present physical and mental condition, as well as medical history,
including any addictions to drugs, alcohol, or gambling; attitude toward
investigation (such as hostile or cooperative); relationship to victim
or crime scene; incriminating facts or possible motives; alibi or other
statements that the suspect related to investigators; religious or fraternal
affiliations or prejudices; home environment; social attitudes in general;
hobbies; sexual interests or deviations, but only if directly relevant to the
investigation; abilities or opportunities to commit the offense); and
• The victim or victims (including, for companies or other institutions,
attitudes and practices toward employees and public; financial status;
and for persons, nature of injury or harm and details thereof; age, sex,
marital status, and family responsibilities; social attitudes regarding
race, nationality, religion, etc.; gang affiliation; financial and social
circumstances; physical and mental characteristics; sexual interests or
deviations, but only if directly relevant to the investigation; blackmail
potentialities). 421
The investigative techniques that should be employed in gathering this
information are beyond the purview of this paper, but it should be sufficient to
note that gathering all of this information is no small task. In addition, all of the
authors repeatedly stress the importance of this stage to ensure proper preparation
for a successful interrogation.
The Interrogation Setting
Each of the authorities focuses on the physical set-up and contextconstruction
for the interrogation. The Reid Technique suggests that “the principal
psychological factor contributing to a successful interview or interrogation is
privacy — being alone with the person during questioning.” 422 This is based on
the psychological premise that we, as humans, are more comfortable revealing
secrets to only one person at a time. 423 Second only to privacy, according to the
Reid Technique, is the need to minimize reminders of consequences by removing
police paraphernalia from both the room and the interrogator’s person. 424 Beyond
this, the Reid Technique provides suggestions on, among other things, selecting
proper décor (“remove all distractions”), lighting (“good, but not excessive or
glaring, illumination of the suspect’s face”), noise level (as low as possible),
and even arrangement of chairs (“investigator and subject should be separated
by about four to five feet and should directly face each other, without . . . any
other object between them”). 425 All of these are meant to create an environment
that the authors suggest will be conducive to eliciting responsiveness from the
421
Id., p. 20-21.
422
Id., p. 51.
423
Id.
424
Id., p. 56.
425
Id., p. 58-59.
178