How to Become a Forensic Interviewer

Interrogation requires training.

Forensic interviewers are law enforcement officials who specialize in questioning suspects and victims of crimes. They facilitate a non-traumatic but reliable interview process for documenting and later presenting evidence and witness testimony in a court of law. While any police officer can interrogate a suspect, a Certified Forensic Interviewer (CFI) will help raise confession and conviction rates as well as the professional standards of his local department.

Things You'll Need

• Certified Forensic Investigator (CFI) Examination

Instructions

1. Obtain any prerequisites that are required for CFI certification. The Center for Interviewer Standards (CISA) requires a high school diploma as well as a minimum of two years in a public or private position that deals in investigation, interviews and interrogation. Further, anyone convicted of a felony or any crime of moral turpitude, such as embezzlement, fraud or the like is ineligible for certification.

2. Study for the CFI examination. Candidates may already be able to pass the examination based on their past work experience. However, CISA's handbook for exam candidates offers a bibliography of works from which the questions have been developed. In addition, Wicklander, Zulawski & Associates offers online seminars for interview and interrogation training (See References). Whether you read up or take a webinar, CISA recommends candidates rely upon more than personal experience when taking the CFI exam.

3. Take the CFI examination. The test is composed of 160 questions (140 scored questions, 20 research questions) that deal with areas such as interview setting, legal aspects, false confessions, fact gathering and interpretation of subject behavior.

4. Get re-certified after three years from the date of your exam. To maintain your status as a CFI, you will need to obtain 24 "Continuing Education Credits" during that period. Seminars on interview and interrogation count as 1 credit per hour attended with a certificate of completion. If you publish an interview or interrogation article in a recognized law enforcement or security journal, CISA will award eight credits. Further, at the discretion of the Advisory Committee, you also may obtain credit based upon contributions to articles and texts that relate to interrogation. Or, to keep things simple, just retake the exam and pass it again.

Tips & Warnings

• For obtaining continuing education credits, submit 10 potential questions to CISA for use in future CFI Examinations. If they are accepted, you receive five credits.

References

• CISA: Candidate Handbook
• Wicklander-Zulawski & Associates: Webinars
• Certified Forensic Interviewer: Eligibility Requirements

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish