Anatomy of a False Confession (eBook)

The Interrogation and Conviction of Brendan Dassey

Michael D. Cicchini (Autor)

eBook Download: PDF

2018
248 Seiten
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (Verlag)
978-1-5381-1716-3 (ISBN)

Infos

Anatomy of a False Confession goes inside the interrogation room and explains how government agents got Brendan Dassey to falsely confess to murder; how the prosecutor used that confession to win a conviction; why the conviction was reversed (and why the reversal was later reversed); and how the law should be reformed to avoid future injustices.

---

When Teresa Halbach went missing and was presumed dead, the police targeted Steven Avery for the crime. But Avery's 16-year-old nephew Brendan Dassey told the police that he saw Halbach driving away from Avery's property the day she supposedly was murdered. This version of events would be devastating to the state's case if it ever reached Avery's jury.The police decided to interrogate young Dassey again. For their next go-around they questioned him four times in 48 hourseach time without an adult present and often without reading him his Miranda rights. During this process, the interrogators not only coerced the learning-disabled child into changing his story, but they also got him to confess to participating in the murder! Even though Dassey's so-called confession was contradicted by all of the physical evidence, the jury believed it and found him guilty. Now, more than a decade after the trial, the saga lives on. Although a federal district court reversed Dassey's conviction, a flip-flopping federal appeals court eventually reversed the reversal. Dassey remains convicted and incarcerated; the Supreme Court of the United States is his last hope. Anatomy of a False Confession: The Interrogation and Conviction of Brendan Dassey answers several questions, including: Why did Dassey agree to talk to his interrogators in the first place? Why weren't they required to read him his Miranda rights? Most significantly, how did the interrogators get Dassey to confess to a crime he did not commit? If Dassey was innocent, where did he get the details for his so-called confession? Why did the jury ignore the physical evidence and convict Dassey of murder? And why did the federal courts reverse Dassey's conviction, only to reverse their own reversal?Anatomy of a False Confession takes the reader inside the interrogation room and inside the courtroom to expose the interrogators' tricks, the prosecutors' ploys, and the judicial sleight of hand that conspired to put Dassey behind barsprobably for the rest of his life. The book also discusses several ways that the law should be reformed to avoid future injustices.

Autor

Michael D. Cicchini is a criminal defense lawyer in Kenosha, Wisconsin, about two hours south of Manitowoc where Making a Murderer was filmed. In addition to practicing criminal defense, Cicchini has written four books, twenty law review articles, and a monthly column on criminal and constitutional law. His books include Convicting Avery: The Bizarre Laws and Broken System behind “Making a Murderer” (2017) and Tried and Convicted: How Police, Prosecutors, and Judges Destroy Our Constitutional Rights (Rowman & Littlefield, 2012).

Inhalt

DisclaimersPART IFALSE CONFESSION BASICS1. Brendan Dassey’s Confession2. From Black Box to Glass House3. “People Who Are Innocent Don’t Confess”—Do They?PART IISETTING THE TABLE4. Don’t Let Facts Get in the Way5. Location, Location, Location6. Miranda to the Rescue?7. Bypassing Miranda8. Overcoming Miranda9. Negating Miranda10. Getting to Know All About YouPART IIIINSIDE THE INTERROGATION ROOM11. Scared Straight12. Promises, Promises13. Wordplay14. It’s Better to Give Than to Receive15. Baby Steps16. “It’s Not Your Fault”17. Positive Feedback18. “Would You Like a Sandwich?”19. Remaining Overconfident20. Pulling the Rug from UnderPART IVTRIALS, TRIBULATIONS, AND APPEALS21. Poisoning the Jury Pool22. Spit Shining the Evidence23. A Simple Plan24. Getting Lucky at Trial25. Mailing in the AppealPART VMAKING A FEDERAL CASE OF IT26. Reversal of Fortune27. The AEDPA: “A Formidable Barrier”28. Too Close for Comfort29. Law Is Dead30. Stare Decisis31. What If?PART VILEGAL REFORM32. Reforming Miranda33. Role-Playing Interrogators34. False Confession Experts at Trial35. Bye-Bye Reid?36. The Dangers of DiscoursePART VIIPOSTSCRIPT37. Calling the Supreme CourtBibliographyAbout Michael CicchiniAlso by Michael Cicchini

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 29.10.2018
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Biografien / Erfahrungsberichte
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Romane / Erzählungen
• Themenwelt: Recht / Steuern ► EU / Internationales Recht
• Themenwelt: Recht / Steuern ► Strafrecht ► Strafverfahrensrecht
• Schlagworte: brendan dassey • false confession • Fifth Amendment • Interrogation • Making a murderer • Mark Wiegert • Miranda • Miranda rights • policing • Seventh Circuit • Steven Avery • Tom Fassbender • Violent crime
• ISBN-10: 1-5381-1716-9 / 1538117169
• ISBN-13: 978-1-5381-1716-3 / 9781538117163