PUBLISHER'S NOTE: This Blog is interested in false confessions because of the disturbing number of exonerations in the USA, Canada and multiple other jurisdictions throughout the world, where, in the absence of incriminating forensic evidence the conviction is based on self-incrimination – and because of the growing body of scientific research showing how vulnerable suspects are to widely used interrogation methods such as the notorious ‘Reid Technique.’ As all too many of this Blog's post have shown, I also recognize that pressure for false confessions can take many forms, up to and including physical violence, even physical and mental torture.
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog:
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QUOTE OF THE DAY: " Another CIPEM interview was labelled “very troubling” and “oppressive” by top barrister Nigel Hampton, KC. “I've seen some … extreme interviews over the years, but I've never seen anything quite like this.”
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PASSAGE ONE OF THE DAY: "It was a dramatic and ignominious end for the technique, which aimed to get suspects to talk by creating a more relaxed environment, including no note-taking, shared food, and comfortable seating. After an initial success, when police gained a confession in the 1995 murder of Christchurch woman Angela Blackmoore, serious problems began emerging with CIPEM’s use. A confession extracted by two detectives using CIPEM to interview a suspect in the Lois Tolley murder investigation, was shown to be false, but only after the man had been charged with Tolley’s murder. High Court judge Simon France excoriated the interviews, saying the man had been manipulated, and his confession was improperly obtained and not credible. The interviews were not a pursuit of a “neutral truth” but “a sustained pursuit of a particular ‘truth’”, Justice France ruled."
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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "However, the fatal blow for CIPEM appears to have come when international interviewing expert Mary Schollum withdrew her support for the method. Schollum had conducted a review of CIPEM in 2021, and agreed it complied with international standards. But in a dramatic about-face, after questions from Stuff, and seeing how CIPEM had been used in interviews, Schollum said she no longer agreed with her report’s conclusions. Admitting she felt foolish for allowing herself to be convinced there were no problems with CIPEM, Schollum said the technique didn’t meet international standards, and her report would have been very different if police had provided her with all the information about the model. Schollum said when she initially asked for more documents, such as interview transcripts, and Justice France’s stinging judgment in the Tolley case, police refused them. “I feel a bit stupid now. And all I can really say in my defence is that I did my review and that final report in good faith, but some of the conclusions are not right.” Schollum's change of view was sparked by new material shown to her by Stuff that indicated similarities between aspects of CIPEM, and the internationally derided Reid Technique of interviewing."
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PASSAGE THREE OF THE DAY: "Stuff’s three-year investigation has shown how CIPEM and its architect Tom Fitzgerald were allowed to operate with limited internal oversight, and initial belief the model was reaping remarkable successes led to many requests for Fitzgerald and his team to help crack other cold cases. In mid-2019, Fitzgerald claimed to two assistant commissioners that CIPEM had 100% success in getting confessions or eliminating suspects. However, after the failures of CIPEM interviewers in the Lois Tolley investigation were exposed and strongly criticised in 2021, the new technique’s sheen began to tarnish. Despite 25 officers having been trained in CIPEM, police claim it was only fully used in five early cases, though elements of it are likely to have been employed in numerous other cases. Other correspondence obtained by Stuff under the Official Information Act shows growing police irritation and anger at Stuff’s investigations into CIPEM."
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PASSAGE FOUR OF THE DAY: "While vast passages have been redacted by police, communications show Tom Fitzgerald pushing back and defending his model; questioning the trustworthiness of journalists and claiming they would “put a spin” on stories; calling on his superiors to demand an apology over a headline he claimed was false; and expressing concerns about leaks within police. It also shows senior police had to carry out follow-up sessions with CIPEM-trained staff to stress the dangers of using interviewing elements associated with the Reid Technique."
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STORY: "Final death knell of controversial police tactic revealed," by Mike White and Blair Ensor, published by 'Stuff', on August 31, 2024.
SUB-HEADING: "Tom Fitzgerald’s (centre) controversial Complex Investigation Phased Engagement Model (CIPEM) was used in five homicide cases, according to police:
SUB-HEADING: "In one sentence from the top, the fate of a much-criticised police interviewing technique that extracted a false confession from a murder suspect, was sealed. Mike White and Blair Ensor investigate."
GIST: "The final death knell of a controversial New Zealand police interviewing technique has been revealed in correspondence between the country’s top officer and one of his deputies.
Police Commissioner Andrew Coster was so concerned with the status of the Complex Investigation Phased Engagement Model (CIPEM), which was at the heart of a false confession in a high-profile murder case, that he wanted to know whether it was being used any more.
The response was definitive and devastating: CIPEM had been abandoned and will never be used again.
CIPEM was designed and promoted by former CIB head Detective Superintendent Tom Fitzgerald in 2018, but its existence, outside police circles, remained secret until it was exposed by Stuff in 2022.
After it was initially trumpeted as a major breakthrough in cracking cold cases, alarms began to be raised by the courts and senior lawyers about its use.
Eventually, an international expert who previously validated the technique, retracted her support for CIPEM, due to concerns with aspects of it.
Now, it can be revealed that in January, Coster wrote to Deputy Commissioner Tania Kura, asking her to confirm “the use of the CIPEM technique remains suspended, in line with discussions last year”.
The following day, Kura replied: “Thanks Andy. I have confirmed with Chris Page, as the acting [Assistant Commissioner] Investigations, that CIPEM is not and will not be used, now or in the future.”
It was a dramatic and ignominious end for the technique, which aimed to get suspects to talk by creating a more relaxed environment, including no note-taking, shared food, and comfortable seating.
After an initial success, when police gained a confession in the 1995 murder of Christchurch woman Angela Blackmoore, serious problems began emerging with CIPEM’s use.
A confession extracted by two detectives using CIPEM to interview a suspect in the Lois Tolley murder investigation, was shown to be false, but only after the man had been charged with Tolley’s murder.
High Court judge Simon France excoriated the interviews, saying the man had been manipulated, and his confession was improperly obtained and not credible.
The interviews were not a pursuit of a “neutral truth” but “a sustained pursuit of a particular ‘truth’”, Justice France ruled.
Another CIPEM interview was labelled “very troubling” and “oppressive” by top barrister Nigel Hampton, KC.
“I've seen some … extreme interviews over the years, but I've never seen anything quite like this.”
Concerns about CIPEM further increased when two complaints about it were made to the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA), and the Law Commission announced it would look into the technique.]
Police were forced to launch a review of all investigative interviewing, and internal rumblings began to emerge about how the CIPEM controversy had been handled by police.
As police fought to conceal details of the technique, Stuff repeatedly sought judgments from the Ombudsman about police withholding information, and were twice forced to take High Court action to obtain documents.
However, the fatal blow for CIPEM appears to have come when international interviewing expert Mary Schollum withdrew her support for the method.
Schollum had conducted a review of CIPEM in 2021, and agreed it complied with international standards.
But in a dramatic about-face, after questions from Stuff, and seeing how CIPEM had been used in interviews, Schollum said she no longer agreed with her report’s conclusions.
Admitting she felt foolish for allowing herself to be convinced there were no problems with CIPEM, Schollum said the technique didn’t meet international standards, and her report would have been very different if police had provided her with all the information about the model.
Schollum said when she initially asked for more documents, such as interview transcripts, and Justice France’s stinging judgment in the Tolley case, police refused them.
“I feel a bit stupid now. And all I can really say in my defence is that I did my review and that final report in good faith, but some of the conclusions are not right.”
Schollum's change of view was sparked by new material shown to her by Stuff that indicated similarities between aspects of CIPEM, and the internationally derided Reid Technique of interviewing.
On December 21, 2023, Schollum emailed police Assistant Commissioner Sue Schwalger.
“After a lot of thought, I decided I needed to write to you about my final report on CIPEM,” Schollum said.
She attached a letter outlining her concerns with the technique, and some of her dealings with police.
Her letter has been withheld by police and Schollum, but Stuff has appealed this decision to the Ombudsman.
However, in an email to Stuff this week, Schollum said her letter asked police to make no further use of her report on CIPEM as she no longer stood by her conclusions.
It seems Schollum’s withdrawal of support for CIPEM finally brought the issue to a head, and sparked action from the top of police, with Coster seeking clarity on CIPEM’s use, just weeks after Schollum’s letter.
Kura’s blunt and brutal assurance that CIPEM would never be used again, was the final act in an experiment that has heaped unwanted focus and controversy on police tactics.
Stuff’s three-year investigation has shown how CIPEM and its architect Tom Fitzgerald were allowed to operate with limited internal oversight, and initial belief the model was reaping remarkable successes led to many requests for Fitzgerald and his team to help crack other cold cases.
In mid-2019, Fitzgerald claimed to two assistant commissioners that CIPEM had 100% success in getting confessions or eliminating suspects.
However, after the failures of CIPEM interviewers in the Lois Tolley investigation were exposed and strongly criticised in 2021, the new technique’s sheen began to tarnish.
Despite 25 officers having been trained in CIPEM, police claim it was only fully used in five early cases, though elements of it are likely to have been employed in numerous other cases.
Other correspondence obtained by Stuff under the Official Information Act shows growing police irritation and anger at Stuff’s investigations into CIPEM.
While vast passages have been redacted by police, communications show Tom Fitzgerald pushing back and defending his model; questioning the trustworthiness of journalists and claiming they would “put a spin” on stories; calling on his superiors to demand an apology over a headline he claimed was false; and expressing concerns about leaks within police.
It also shows senior police had to carry out follow-up sessions with CIPEM-trained staff to stress the dangers of using interviewing elements associated with the Reid Technique.
Fitzgerald has continued to back his interviewing technique, insisting CIPEM did not “include any of the well-criticised ‘Reid techniques’”, which he remained “very critical” of.
“CIPEM is [in] no way guilt-presumptive or deceptive. CIPEM aims to put interviewees at ease to facilitate dialogue, build a relationship, obtain the truth, and enhance the prospect of re-engagement.”
Fitzgerald has always stressed his retirement from police in October 2022, after 31 years, which surprised many colleagues, had been planned for some time, and had nothing to do with scrutiny of CIPEM.
He said he had continued to assist police and cooperate with the IPCA investigation into CIPEM.
The results of that investigation, which is also considering broader police interviewing, are due to be released later this year.
Police’s own review of its interviewing practices, sparked by concern over CIPEM, was due to be completed in May 2023, but is still to be released."
The entire story ca be read at:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350396795/final-death-knell-controversial-police-tactic-revealed
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
- SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
