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Exactly, being rude and blunt right away is probably about the most efficient thing they can do. I bet 70% of the time people change their stories when confron

Exactly, being rude and blunt right away is probably about the most efficient thing they can do. I bet 70% of the time people change their stories when confronted with that line.

goialoq 9y ago
And of course it doesn't matter whether the story is true or false, just the the police officer coerces the person of interest to tell as story the police officer likes.
rconti 9y ago
I couldn't disagree more. The police are there to gather evidence. They're effectively tainting evidence if they mistreat people or ask leading questions or the like. You'd better believe it matters when they come after you for (say) making false statements to the police, and it's their word against yours, and the court always sides with the cops.
- zaroth 9y ago
  It turns out that the best way to gather evidence isn't actually polite deference to every wild story you hear! I don't understand your point at all about "tainting evidence" and how that could possibly follow from brusque questioning.
  - matt4077 9y ago
    "Brusque questioning" will obviously be applied completely subjective. Once you start deferring to police officers' immediate judgement, the legal process is tainted to amplify every single stereotype police officers hold. White victims will obviously be treated with more deference than blacks, Spanish-speaking people will all be assumed to be illegal immigrants etc. So the young man accused of something will be "brusquely questioned" within the first minutes and confess to the crime. While the old woman is treated with deference, has a chance to talk to a lawyer, and never gets convicted. And the worst thing is the spiral, self-amplifying nature: start like that, and the sort of people already suspect will be the only ones actually being charged with crimes and convicted, which will reinforce all the ideas the process started out with.
- BurningFrog 9y ago
  This discussion about what police tactics work best very likely contain zero actual cops, but several people with certain knowledge.
  - icebraining 9y ago
    On that note, I found the book 400 Things Cops Know - written by an actual Sergeant - to be a pretty good read, reasonably informative and occasionally surprisingly candid.
    - BurningFrog 9y ago
      Ordered a copy. Thanx!
syshum 9y ago
>> I bet 70% of the time people change their stories when confronted with that line. I am sure they do, that does not mean 70% of people are lying. Just means they are bullied into changing their story to appease the cops. 90% of all cases end in a plea bargain or other guilty/no-contest finding outside of a trial, do you honestly believe the police are that good, or is the legal system one big extortion racket designed to punish anyone that wants to stand up for themselves, their rights or their innocence? Hint... the police are not that good... and thousands of innocent people are ground away by the system daily

Exactly, being rude and blunt right away is probably about the most efficient thing they can do. I bet 70% of the time people change their stories when confronted with that line.

goialoq 9y ago

And of course it doesn't matter whether the story is true or false, just the the police officer coerces the person of interest to tell as story the police officer likes.

rconti 9y ago

I couldn't disagree more. The police are there to gather evidence. They're effectively tainting evidence if they mistreat people or ask leading questions or the like. You'd better believe it matters when they come after you for (say) making false statements to the police, and it's their word against yours, and the court always sides with the cops.

zaroth 9y ago
It turns out that the best way to gather evidence isn't actually polite deference to every wild story you hear! I don't understand your point at all about "tainting evidence" and how that could possibly follow from brusque questioning.
- matt4077 9y ago
  "Brusque questioning" will obviously be applied completely subjective. Once you start deferring to police officers' immediate judgement, the legal process is tainted to amplify every single stereotype police officers hold. White victims will obviously be treated with more deference than blacks, Spanish-speaking people will all be assumed to be illegal immigrants etc. So the young man accused of something will be "brusquely questioned" within the first minutes and confess to the crime. While the old woman is treated with deference, has a chance to talk to a lawyer, and never gets convicted. And the worst thing is the spiral, self-amplifying nature: start like that, and the sort of people already suspect will be the only ones actually being charged with crimes and convicted, which will reinforce all the ideas the process started out with.
BurningFrog 9y ago
This discussion about what police tactics work best very likely contain zero actual cops, but several people with certain knowledge.
- icebraining 9y ago
  On that note, I found the book 400 Things Cops Know - written by an actual Sergeant - to be a pretty good read, reasonably informative and occasionally surprisingly candid.
  - BurningFrog 9y ago
    Ordered a copy. Thanx!

syshum 9y ago

>> I bet 70% of the time people change their stories when confronted with that line. I am sure they do, that does not mean 70% of people are lying. Just means they are bullied into changing their story to appease the cops. 90% of all cases end in a plea bargain or other guilty/no-contest finding outside of a trial, do you honestly believe the police are that good, or is the legal system one big extortion racket designed to punish anyone that wants to stand up for themselves, their rights or their innocence? Hint... the police are not that good... and thousands of innocent people are ground away by the system daily