“If a picture is worth a thousand words, it’s been my experience that a video is worth ten thousand.” – Clackamas County, Oregon Sheriff’s Office
When it comes to interviews, police and suspects can both have their words and conduct analyzed in a court room. While everyone would like to portray themselves in the best light possible, if the interview is recorded, there is little room for interpretation. How do officers feel about that?
According to a 2004 study by former U.S. Attorney Thomas P. Sullivan, most law enforcement agencies endorsed the practice of recording.
According to the still-relevant study,
“…the electronic recording of police interviews with criminal suspects is an efficient and powerful law enforcement tool. It has been done for years by many police agencies large and small throughout the United States. Their experiences have been uniformly positive.”
Officers have found the recordings to be immensely helpful in court. According to the study, testimonies from law enforcement agencies around the country say that video recording achieves seven very important goals:
- Eliminates the problem of suspects changing their stories in court
- Resolves disputes regarding confessions
- Permits the viewer to see how the suspect looked and acted before being “cleaned up” for court (for example, one video showed a suspect giggling when he described beating children)
- Captures the person’s own words, so police can’t be accused of changing what was said
- Ensures suspects can be quoted without being questioned by a defense attorney
- Allows the judge and jury to better understand the demeanor of the defendant outside the courtroom
- Preserves evidence in a way that written reports cannot
Recording suspect interviews is invaluable and the information gathered and presented through video cannot be duplicated elsewhere. iRecord has been helping law enforcement agencies around the country better serve and protect our communities. Contact us today to learn how we can help you.