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Sep 23 2014

How Police Interrogation Works

64 min 9 movies discussed
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Every year, police across the U.S. get thousands of criminals to confess to their crimes. The trouble is, the procedure that almost all departments use is grounded in bad science and can produce false confessions. Learn about ways of making you talk.

AI Summary

Ever wonder how those intense police interrogation scenes on TV actually work in real life? Josh and Chuck dive into the fascinating and controversial world of police interrogation techniques, exploring the famous Reid Technique that's used to get suspects to confess. From the psychology behind "good cop, bad cop" to why innocent people sometimes confess to crimes they didn't commit, this episode reveals the methods law enforcement uses to crack cases - and why some of these techniques are coming under serious scrutiny for potentially producing false confessions.


Movies Discussed

‌Beretta
‌Beretta
2025
★ 5.0
"that was Beretta — Mentioned when discussing Robert Blake, who starred in Beretta and was later involved in a real murder case." — Chuck
Bernie
Bernie
2012 1h 39m
★ 6.6
"Did you see that movie? Yeah. That's good — Referenced when discussing a hypothetical scenario about someone named Bernie who shot an old lady." — Josh
Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds
2005
★ 8.3
"Criminal Minds. Something like that, it's not it — Mentioned as a guess for the Law and Order show they were trying to remember, but acknowledged as incorrect." — Chuck
Hey Dude
Hey Dude
1989
★ 6.8
"stars of the cult classic show, Hey Dude — Referenced in podcast advertisement as the show David Lasher and Christine Taylor starred in."
Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Law & Order: Criminal Intent
2001
★ 7.6
"The one with Vincent D'Onofrio — Mentioned when trying to remember the specific Law and Order show featuring Vincent D'Onofrio." — Josh
Law and Order
Law and Order
1953 1h 20m
★ 5.5
"Like Law and Order — Referenced as another example of police procedural TV shows." — Josh
Poltergeist
Poltergeist
1982 1h 54m
★ 7.2
"the dial-up sound like poltergeist — Referenced in podcast advertisement when describing AOL Instant Messenger sounds from the 90s."
The Central Park Five
The Central Park Five
2012 1h 59m
★ 7.0
"the documentary from Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon, The Central Park Five — Recommended as a documentary that shows false confessions and police interrogation techniques firsthand." — Chuck
The Wire
The Wire
2002
★ 8.6
"Like The Wire — Mentioned as an example of TV cop shows where writers do their homework on police interrogation techniques." — Josh

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