The 15 Minute Debriefing: Getting information from your perp when you don’t have the time!
It’s every cop’s responsibility to make a commitment to obtain information about criminal activity. Arrests afford the perfect opportunity. When an officer arrests a criminal, regardless of the charge(s), he or she has to take advantage of the captive audience and attempt to elicit information that may help uncover crime or assist in existing criminal investigations. Handcuffs seem to have an amazing motivational influence on criminals. Remember, the first thing your perp is thinking about after arrest is how he can get out of it and the person he thinks can help him the most, is you, the arresting officer.
I know what you are thinking, especially those of you whom are assigned to patrol - Your supervisor won’t give you the time to talk to your prisoners and conduct a proper debriefing back at the precinct or booking section. They rush you to finish the paperwork and get back out on the street. Shame on them! Trying the get information from everyone you arrest should be standard operating procedure for every cop at every opportunity! Volumes of information on a variety of crimes ranging from vandalism to murder have been uncovered in similar debriefings. In fact, in one NYPD case where a gang member was arrested for driving without a license, a debriefing by the arresting officer uncovered information on a previous assassination attempt on a Police Captain in the Bronx. Shortly thereafter, several arrests were made.
Truthfully, you can make the time to debrief every one of your prisoners and better your chances of developing information without even delaying the arrest process. I call this The 15 Minute Debriefingand it consists of a focused, efficient conversation with your prisoner that starts off with developing rapport at the time of arrest. Showing respect for your prisoner and doing your best to maintain his dignity is a great way to develop rapport during an arrest situation. This will pave the way for the next 15 minutes to engage in your debriefing endeavor. Here is the procedure:
0 – 5 minutes
Obtain pedigree information on the street, if feasible. Get your prisoner into your police cruiser and away from the scene as quickly as possible. He’ll feel more comfortable to talk if he is out of view of others, especially people he knows.Think about something you can say that’s going to get your prisoner thinking “I gotta get out of this!” Ask him elicitation questions. “Do you have any children? Are you married? Will you lose your job because of this arrest? Have you ever been arrested before? Have you spent any length of time in jail? Are you on parole? Probation? “
Street Cop Legal Note: An arresting officer is not required to inform a prisoner of his legal rights under Miranda unless he is going to question the prisoner about the current arrest. |
5 – 10 Minutes
Let him know you are interested in helping him. “I can help you!” Let him know you need information. Make him feel he has something to give you but don’t ask him to implicate himself and don’t read him his rights, yet. Remind him that you and he are alone. No one can hear your conversation. Confidentiality is how you operate. Tell him you are looking for information on real bad guys. “You’re not a real bad guy!” Let him know that you want information on people that have done much worse things than him. “There are real bad guys out there!” “There are drug dealers out there that are killing our kids with their drugs. C’mon, you know people selling drugs, people carrying guns, people dealing in stolen property!
Street Cop Legal Note: An officer can offer to help a prisoner in exchange for information but can not promise to have the charges dismissed or do anything that is not in his power. Only a District Attorney can offer such a deal. |
10 – 15 Minutes
Time is running out. “We’re going to be in the precinct in a few minutes. We won’t have much of a chance to be alone in there.” But don’t totally close the door on your chance to talk inside the precinct. Reiterate your willingness to help him out and that you need information. And always leave them with a phone number to contact you later if they decide. You’ll be surprised!
Street Cop Legal Trick: An officer can offer to dismiss the charges on a prisoner when the officer knows, in fact, that the charges are going to be deferred by the prosecutor or that, although the officer knows the prisoner is guilty but there is no current probable cause for arrest. |
Keep in mind, not every prisoner is going to start talking to you right away but the more you debrief your prisoners, the better your chances of acquiring information. The better you become at the 15 Minute Debriefing procedure, the more information you’ll acquire. After a while, your supervisors will take notice of the amount of information you uncover and, as other officers who use this method have said, you’ll be asked to start debriefing other officer’s prisoners. The formula that leads to a successful debriefing is:
Arrest + Rapport + Motivation + Persistency +
Reality Setting In = INFORMATION
