False Confessions

“any confession or admission to a criminal act that the confessor did not commit” (Holmberg, 2012 p. 136)

• 1989, white female jogger is attacked and raped in Central Park 
• Lost 3/4 of blood and suffered multiple other injuries 
• Survived but had no memory of the attack 
• 2 days later, 5 African American and Hispanic boys aged 14-16 had confessed 
• Only had films of the confessions (not interviews) to go on and no forensic evidence linking them 
• Retracted their confessions and claimed they were under police duress but received the longest juvenile sentence possible 
• 2002 the actual rapist came forward and forensics linked him 
• Upon being freed the 5 said they confessed because they thought it would mean they could go home, call someone or otherwise leave what was an unpleasant situation

• Estimated to be 20% of convictions 
• 15/70 (Scheck et al, 2000)
• 12% for Icelandic prisoners (Sigurdsson & Gudjonsson, 1996)
• These could occur to protect others, stop police coercion and force or to avoid detention

• P's asked to type a list of words and to not press the ALT key 
• The computer crashed after 60 seconds and P's were accused of pressing the key
• All initially denied the allegation 
• A confession form was produced and p's were invited to sign it 
• Another confederate claimed to have heard the commotion and asked what had happened to the P
• Brought back into the room, read collated details of what happened and asked to tell their side of the story 
• 69% signed the confession
• 28% told the other researcher they pressed the ALT key 
• 9% created the illusory facts created by the experimenter to fit the story 
• When there was said to be a witness a sizeable number confessed

• Gudjonsson (2003)
• The confession is volunteered by the suspect without any coercion from the investigator 
• Might be trying to shield the real culprit 
• Might want fame 
• Might have a psychotic mental illness and confuse fantasy with reality

• 1932: 20 month old Charles Lindbergh was kidnapped and killed
• Found 2 months later 
• 200 people confessed

• A false confession due to coercion and pressure from the police offered to appease the investigator with knowledge that it is false 
• Used to escape an unpleasant situation in the hopes of receiving some gain

• 1975: Guildford pub bombed by the IRA
• 4 men falsely confessed under intense police coercion 
• All charges dropped by 1991

• American republican party chairman in Washington 
• Accused of raping his daughter, sexually abusing his son, murdering babies and satanic cult crimes 
• Interrogated for 5 months rigorously, hypnotised and given many details about the crimes with police psychologists telling him how offenders often repress the memories of crime
• Eventually he 'recalled' his crimes despite no physical evidence
• Richard Ofshe argued that he had been brainwashed and got him to confess to a phoney crime using the same techniques about making his kids commit incest
• Despite this, he still served all 20 years

• Mental health status 
• Influence of narcotics 
• Ignorance of the law
• Understanding of the situation

• Fear and experience of violence 
• Coercion and trickery

• 1993: 3 eight year old boys were killed and their naked bodies were found in the creek a day later
• Post mortem examination mistook animal predation with castration 
• 3 suspects (all under 18)
• One interviewed for over a month 
• One with low IQ interviewed for only 12 hours (only 46 minutes recorded)
• Gave inconsistent testimony and sentenced to 40 years for first and second degree murder 
• One other given death sentence after giving up media available info on crime 
• The other was given life 
• Later forensic evidence exonerated the three despite confessions (and 18 years in prison)