A common complaint of those touched by crime is the lack of
information they receive from the police during the investigation. (Family of murder victim finds wait for justice painfully long )
We are used to TV shows where we know all the clues and
evidence as soon as the cops do, and sometimes before they do. So when real
life strikes and very little is shared with us as victims or family members, we
think something is wrong.
We assume the secrecy must mean we are suspects. And although we might very well be suspects
as many perpetrators of crime are related to the victim or known to the victim,
there are many other reasons investigators are closed-lipped.
We might feel insulted, believing the reasons cops won’t
tell us anything is because they don’t trust that we won’t blab to our friends
or the media. That might be true as well. Preserving the integrity of the
investigation is paramount in the minds of investigators. They do not want to
work hard on a case, only to have it fall apart in court.
There are many less personal reasons, however, for not sharing information during an investigation. For one
thing, early evidence might be misleading, giving victims and their families
either false hope or unnecessary grief.
For example, the presence of a weapon may make it appear a
victim committed suicide, whereas further investigation might reveal the death
was the result of a homicide—or vice versa.
A body found partially nude might make it appear the victim
was sexually assaulted. An autopsy, however, might reveal the person died from
hypothermia. A common symptom of late-stage hypothermia is a feeling of being
intensely hot. Many victims of exposure throw off their clothes just before
succumbing to the cold.
Sometimes withholding evidence helps trip up suspects as
well. If someone confesses to shooting the victim when the autopsy shows the
victim died of stab wounds, the investigators know they have to keep looking.
Releasing information about a case can easily contaminate
witnesses’ ability to testify accurately when it comes time for a trial. The human mind is not an accurate recorder of
data. Memories, thoughts, and opinions are easily altered. It is a feature of
our mind that we integrate new knowledge into the framework of thinking we
already possess. Learning of evidence before testifying can potentially alter a witness' memory of what occurred.
It’s a fine line investigators walk when determining what to
reveal to the public before the case is tried. Some details, such as video
surveillance photos of suspects or the make and model of a suspicious vehicle,
are often released in order to elicit help from the public in solving a
crime. Other information is kept close
to the chest.
Although prior to trial, investigators must release all
information they have gathered to the defendant (disclosure), victims and their
families are not afforded the same courtesy. Often, the first time victims and their families learn of evidence is when it is presented in a
court room.
As unfair as that sounds, this secrecy is necessary to preserve both
the investigation and the trial.
Withholding evidence from the public about a biker gang
slaying is key to solving a cold case massacre in my soon-to-be-released novel,
SHADOW RIDERS. Watch for it.
Tight-lipped is brought to you by the BACKTRACKER SERIES
