during the interview may mention such facts after the interview. By being alert,
you may secure the very facts that had eluded you during the interview.
c. If the person has traveled far to be interviewed, help him to arrange and
schedule his travel home, or to get reimbursed when authorized.
Such action
promotes future cooperation.
19. Evaluating the Interview. During and right after closing the interview, strive
to evaluate the interviewee, and the information, as well as your own performance.
a. The Interviewee.
The mannerisms and emotional state of the person may
indicate the reliability of his information.
Evasiveness, hesitation, or
unwillingness may signify that he is not cooperating to the fullest. Nervousness,
such as a continuous wetting of the lips, may show an attempt at deception.
Flushing or perspiration on the face may show the seriousness which he attaches to
the points being discussed. These may also indicate that he is not giving complete
information. Some persons, however, are able to lie without any noticeable outward
signs. Moreover, innocent persons sometimes display signs of extreme nervousness.
There are these reasons, and many others that may cause you to misjudge such signs.
The information furnished during the interview cannot be evaluated conclusively.
Seek persons who have known the interviewee for some time in order to weigh
inferences gained from the signs of emotional disturbance displayed.
b. The Information.
This has no real value until it is evaluated and, if
possible, checked for accuracy as follows:
(1) Compare it in detail with the known facts of the crime.
(2) Conflicting statements about the same c se should be compared.
These
should be compared with the known facts against the background information
developed. The human factors that affect the powers of perception and memory may
be the cause of the differences; they should be considered but should not be relied
upon too greatly to explain different accounts of the same event. Sometimes, the
cause of the differences may be found only in the motivation or prejudices of the
person who lied in his account of the incident.
(3) Review the entire case as it has been developing. Give close attention
to the gaps in your knowledge of the case. Strive to obtain a clearer picture of
the case than you had before the interview.
c. Your Own Performance. You should try to improve your ability to interview
persons successfully.
Evaluate your own performance during and after each
interview, both your approach and manner.
This is more necessary when you have
been unsuccessful in extracting from the interviewee all the information that you
believed he had.
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MP1016
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