Writers often use the terms “interview” and “interrogation” interchangeably. The differences are significant, however.
The interview is strictly to obtain information. It’s the standard Q-and-A session between an officer and a witness or a victim. It might be conducted in a home, on the street, in a detective’s office, or in an interview room. Sometimes it is recorded but often the officer simply takes notes.
The interrogation is conducted to elicit a confession from a suspect. Usually it occurs in an interrogation room at the police station or a similar room at the jail. It is an “adversarial” conversation with the goal of obtaining a confession. Psychological pressure and “strategic deception” are used by interrogators to move the suspect to confess.
A small police station may not have an interrogation room. A detective might question suspects in his or her office, although this is not the ideal arrangement. Too many distractions, too many items the suspect can pick up and use as a weapon.
Interrogations should be recorded, preferably audio and video. A common tactic of defense attorneys is to attempt to suppress any confession. A recording shows the suspect was not under duress when he confessed.
Most officers don’t wear their weapons into an interrogation room. The firearm is secured in another location, perhaps in a gun locker designed for that purpose or locked in a file cabinet.
The interview is strictly to obtain information. It’s the standard Q-and-A session between an officer and a witness or a victim. It might be conducted in a home, on the street, in a detective’s office, or in an interview room. Sometimes it is recorded but often the officer simply takes notes.
The interrogation is conducted to elicit a confession from a suspect. Usually it occurs in an interrogation room at the police station or a similar room at the jail. It is an “adversarial” conversation with the goal of obtaining a confession. Psychological pressure and “strategic deception” are used by interrogators to move the suspect to confess.
A small police station may not have an interrogation room. A detective might question suspects in his or her office, although this is not the ideal arrangement. Too many distractions, too many items the suspect can pick up and use as a weapon.
Interrogations should be recorded, preferably audio and video. A common tactic of defense attorneys is to attempt to suppress any confession. A recording shows the suspect was not under duress when he confessed.
Most officers don’t wear their weapons into an interrogation room. The firearm is secured in another location, perhaps in a gun locker designed for that purpose or locked in a file cabinet.
