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 "the interviewer needs to be thoroughly familiar with any pertinent existing information, including crime scene photographs, records, and files." "... the Interviewer needs to be thoroughly familiar with any pertinent existing information, Including crime scene photographs, records, and files."

Terms of the interview

Before beginning any interview, the interviewer needs to be thoroughly familiar with any pertinent existing information. including crime scene photographs. records. and files. This information can be used not only to draw conclusions but to establish a focused interest in the offender. By showing interest. respect is conveyed to the suspect. an initial obiective in establishing rapport Although it is often difficult in cases of violent and brutal crimes. this show of respect often allows the interviewer to get to the point of the interview more quickly since less time will be spent by the subject in evaluating the interviewer.

To be successful. the interviewer needs to convince the subject that the interview can be beneficial for him or her. In our study. some offenders admitted their crimes. In these situations they found value in the interview, believing they were contributing to increased understanding or to clarify other people's conclusions about them. Offenders who would not admit to their crimes cooperated in order to point out why it was impossible for them to have committed the crimes. Other offenders consented to the interviews in order to "teach" police how the crimes were admitted and motivated. Those who refused interviews had reasons ranging from advice of anattorney to their own psychotic states.

The Communication Link

Rapport was the key communication link in our interviews. Once established and recognized. it allowed the interviewer to lead the interview and to re—establish communication when it broke down. Rapport was frequently gained when the investigator mirrored below the level of conscious awareness. the subiect's spoken and unspoken behavior. This included matching the words of the subject adopting aspects of his posture, and speaking in a similar tone and rate of speech.

Eliclting information

Once communication had been initiated and rapport established, the questioning began. In our study, the what/where/when sequencing and descriptions of places where the crime events occurred were sought first. Next. the interviewing Agents asked questions about how the victim was chosen. Finally, questions about thoughts. feelings. and images were posed.

Questions were generally organized around four phases of the murder. These phases are: (1) The precrime phase, (2) the murder event, (3) the disposal of the body, and (4) the postcrime phase.

Pre-crime Phase—Conscious motive for the murder was often elicited by asking what triggered the murder. Those murderers with conscious intent were able to describe this in detail. Those without conscious motive would usually say they could not remember why they killed, but they were able to describe their feelings prior to the murder. Reconstructing the scene prior to the murder helped interviewing Agents determine the cues that moved the offender's murder fantasy into action. For example. offenders were asked to describe their day prior to the murder and their thoughts and feelings before encountering the victim.

The Murder Event—Memory recall of details specific to the murders varied among the offenders interviewed. Those murderers who deliberately planned the murder through a fantasy generally continued to remember details about certain aspects of the murder. During one interview, the Agents remarked that the subject seemed to have almost total recall. The subject corrected the Agents:

"Actually. that's overblown because I really don't (remember everything). I have shabby memory on things I don't want to remember, and things that are shocking or very vivid. I don't forget I trip on those for years."

What the subject avoids or refuses to talk about provides information on areas where strong emotions may exist. (In one case, the murderer began the interview by stating he would not discuss his family.) The interviewer should concentrate on important aspects of the event, such as how the suspect gained access to the victim, conversation and behaviour involving the victim. transporting the victim from one location to another, what the murderer did sexually before, during, and after the victim's death, methods of torture. behaviors after the victim's death (such as mutilation or amputation), and thoughts and feeling during these acts.

Disposal of the Body—Our interviews with the murderers made clear the importance of a fantasy in disposing the victim's body. Once the act was committed, the murderer had to August 1985 / 27