Baby I'm Bored

I once had a witness fall asleep on me while I was interviewing him. I know I have a knack for making people feel at ease, but come on.

Mr. Drowsy was the night clerk at one of those sleazy residental hotels we investigators find ourselves going to way too often. He had witnessed a domestic dispute inside the hallway of the hotel. Typical public defender case. He was about 300 pounds and was sitting on his bed, while I sat on a nearby chair. He started to cat nap early on in the interview. Each time he'd nod off, I'd look around his room for awhile, and eventually work up the courage to yell out his name to wake him back up so I could ask him another question. Then he'd nod off again, and the process would continue. Once I had all the answers to my questions, I quietly let myself out of his room. Yes, I did later confirm with him everything he told me that day when I went back to give him a subpoena. And that woke him up alright. But am I THAT boring to talk to?

Going into an altered state during an interview is not uncommon. Most people, once you start interviewing them, do, in fact, go into a sort of daze. They almost stop noticing you are there, and become consumed with talking about themselves and their observations. And yes, their eyes literally glaze over. I've seen this happen repeatedly. It's the hallmark of a good interview. It is my job as an investigator to allow this altered state to happen and take full advantage of it when it does. It's human nature to like to talk about ourselves and once we have a captive audience (like your local criminal defense investigator), those floodgates swing wide open. Witnesses frequently don't remember who I am, even tho I have told them repeatedly. They were simply too consumed with listening to themselves think, I mean talk. I give people a business card for when their euphoria wears off. I've always thought this was a form of "flow," a psychological state of optimal experience that has been reported by surgeons, athletes and artists alike:http://talentdevelop.com/Page8.html. Btw, lying is not conducive to the the flow process.

Witnesses often make their most important statements as I am at the door in the process of leaving. This is no time to put away your dumbos. If there is something they have held back, it may be blurted out as my hand turns their doorknob. Or, they might make a seemingly out of the blue comment that applies to the case. Classic example: "Well, you know, [insert ethnic group here] people all look alike" when they have identified your client, a [insert ethnic group here] from a 6 pack of photos. I'm sure there is also a psychological reason why the exit door becomes a last minute confessional. Whatever it is, it's an investigator's bread and butter.