How to Take a Statement from a Crime Suspect

Criminal justice personnel, especially law enforcement officers, must know how to correctly obtain a legal statement from a crime suspect that will maintain credibility in court. There are five parts of taking an official statement.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• Your case file on the crime, which should contain photos, forensic reports and witness reports
• Tape recorder or video camera
• Notepad and pen orpencil
• Witness, such as your partner or a stenographer

1. Identify yourself, your rank or position and explain why you are speaking with the suspect. Ask the suspect to identify themselves and give biographical data such as home and employment addresses, age, date of birth, educational level and past arrest or convictions. Ask the suspect to state whether or not the statement is voluntary and if they have been coerced or promised anything for making the statement. Ask these questions in a conversational, non-threatening manner to make the suspect feel at ease.
2. Ask the suspect if they committed the crime or were somehow involved in the crime; this should be a "yes or no" question. If the suspect admits commission of the crime, then ask for details. The transcript of the statement will heard and read by the jury or judge, and gives the basic elements of the crime--essential for the District Attorney to prove that the suspect committed the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.
3. Ask the suspect to describe details of the crime that only the offender would know. Many crime scene details are kept from the media for just this purpose. For example, a burglary suspect might be asked to describe the appearance of a necklace stolen from the victim's home. This step lends credibility that the suspect is indeed guilty of the crime. An unsubstantiated statement may not hold up at the time of trial.
4. Ask again if the statement was voluntary, coerced or if the suspect was made any promises (such as a reduced sentence) if they made the statement. Voluntariness needs to be established both before and after the suspect's statement.
5. ask the suspect to sign and date the statement when the statement is complete and has been put into writing. Also ask the suspect to thoroughly read the statement and correct any transcription errors. Finally, ask (for the record) the suspect to verbally state whether or not the statement is correct. This will be on the tape recording or video of the interview.

Tips & Warnings

• You will already know about the suspect's past arrest and conviction history; this question is asked only to determine the suspect's level of truthfulness.
• In the admission, ask the suspect to use "I" statements like "I stole."
• Prior to making a statement, be sure that the suspect has been advised of their Miranda rights to remain silent and have an attorney present during questioning.
• Any sign of coercion of the statement will result in it being denied admission into evidence, and the judge will instruct the jury to disregard it. This will likely result in a "not guilty" verdict unless other very strong evidence indicates the defendant's guilt.