5.11 Additional Resources and Training
Strong interview skills are developed through training, practice, and by observing seasoned professionals. There are excellent trainings available through law enforcement agencies and organizations, and numerous techniques have been developed around interviewing, reading body language, detecting deception, and many other aspects of the subject interview. Because the interview is so vital to the development and prosecution of criminal cases, time and resources spent developing your interviewing skills and increasing your knowledge will be rewarded in the field.
References
1 1 Constitution of the United States, Amendment 5 1791 (USA); Constitution of the United States, Amendment 14 1868 (USA).
2 2 Miranda vs. Arizona, 86 St. Ct. 1602, (1966).
3 3 Then, L. (2015). Applying the 'cuffs: consistency and clarity in a bright‐line rule for arrest‐like restraints under Miranda custody. Fla. St. U. L. Rev. 42: 843.
4 4 Thompson vs. Keohane, 116 S. Ct. 457, (1995).
5 5 Howes vs. Fields, 132 S. Ct. 1181, (2012).
6 6 United States vs. Kim, 292 F.3d 969, (2002).
7 7 Corley vs. United States 556 U.S. 303, (2009).
8 8 United States Code Annotated, title 18, Pt II, chapter 223, s 3501(b) 1968 (USA).
9 9 United States vs. Jumper, 497 F.3d 699, (2007).
10 10 Davis vs. United States, 512 U.S. 452, at 459, (1994).
11 11 Wood vs. Ercole, 644 F.3d 83, (2011).
12 12 Abela vs. Martin, 380 F.3d 915, (2004).
13 13 Bailenson, J.N. and Yee, N. (2005). Digital chameleons: automatic assimilation of nonverbal gestures in immersive virtual environments. Psychol. Sci. 16 (10): 814–819.
14 14 FBI (2016). Interrogation: a view of the science HIG report. https://www.fbi.gov/file‐repository/hig‐report‐interrogation‐a‐review‐of‐the‐science‐september‐2016.pdf/view (accessed 26 May 2021).
15 15 Collins, R., Lincoln, R., and Frank, M. (2005). The need for rapport in police interviews. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/27826896_The_Need_for_Rapport_in_Police:Interviews (accessed 6 August 2021).
16 16 Biss, M. (2014). Philosophy Documentation Center. Empathy and interrogation. Int. J. Appl. Philos. 28 (2): 277–288.
17 17 Frank, M.G., Menasco, M.A., and O'Sullivan, M. (2008). Human behavior and deception detection. In: Wiley Handbook of Science and Technology for Homeland Security (ed. J.G. Voeller). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9780470087923.hhs299.
18 18 Matsumoto, D., Skinner, L., and Hwang, H. (2014). Reading people: behavioral anomalies and investigative interviewing. https://leb.fbi.gov/articles/featured‐articles/reading‐people‐behavioral‐anomalies‐and‐investigative‐interviewing (accessed 6 August 2021).
Note
1 1 Note that this section discusses interviews in which the individual is free to leave. There are strict laws that govern parameters of custodial interviews, see Section 5.3.
6 The Veterinarian's Role in Animal Cruelty Investigations
Kris Otteman
6.1 The Veterinarian is an Important Partner in Animal Cruelty Investigations
A veterinarian's participation in an animal cruelty investigation is important. The veterinarian is positioned to report on and testify to the overall health and welfare of the animal(s) and has the training, experience, and credibility required to speak to the pain and suffering an animal experienced, and uncover evidence to help determine how an animal died or was injured, or whether sufficient care was given to protect the health of an individual or group of animals.
Veterinary expertise is often required to help answer legal questions as to whether an animal victim's injuries were reckless, intentional, or knowingly committed. Investigations benefit from the participation of a veterinarian who can and will provide information that others involved cannot be expected to contribute.
Veterinary forensics is the use of veterinary medical and animal knowledge to identify, collect, and assess information vital in determining whether a crime involving an animal was committed; in some cases, how, when, and by whom. Veterinarians evaluate evidence in all aspects of animal health and husbandry. Questions about appropriate housing, sanitation, life stage care, and access to veterinary care provide the base of information necessary for law enforcement to investigate a potential crime. Veterinarians crack the code on many complex issues such as time, manner, and cause of death or injury, and can provide information that will be used to rule in or out a criminal act.
Entities that call on the veterinary profession to provide assistance may include law enforcement, prosecutors, agricultural experts, animal care experts, animal control agencies, humane societies, and so on. Services that veterinarians provide in animal cruelty investigations include: assisting in the investigation itself by aiding in identifying important questions and observations for the investigator to consider; assistance at an animal crime scene or in processing evidence including live or deceased animals from a crime scene; communicating results of findings, which may include email and reports; witness or expert testimony; and planning and oversight of medical and behavioral care for animals involved in an investigation or otherwise in care in poor condition or injured as a result of animal cruelty (Figure 6.1).
Figure 6.1 The veterinarian’s role includes evaluation of the behavioral and medical status of each animal.
Source: Oregon Humane Society.
Veterinary forensics digs deep into potential mysteries around animal injury or death and draws conclusions about potential criminal acts, while mirroring the normal process veterinarians use in clinical practice. The veterinarian gathers subjective and objective information, makes an assessment, and delivers a plan for next steps (subjective, objective, assessment, and plan [SOAP]). This information ultimately results in a final opinion and report that is provided to the agency leading the investigation or in some cases directly to a prosecutor or defense attorney.
The need for veterinary forensics is substantial and the lack of access by law enforcement to draw on
