Talk to Me: An Analysis of Statutes Regulating Police Interviews of Child Victims

• Author: Caitlin Dorsch,Michael Klein,Craig Hemmens
• Published date: 01 June 2020
• Date: 01 June 2020
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/jfcj.12162

Talk to Me: An Analysis of Statutes Regulating

Police Interviews of Child Victims

By Michael Klein, Caitlin Dorsch, and Craig Hemmens

ABSTRACT

Children can be unreliable witnesses, and they are especially vulnerable to ques-

tionable interviewpractices. However, in some crimes like childsexual abuse, children

may be the only person capable of providing testimonial evidence. Statesmust balance

the needs of bringing criminals who target children to justice and ensuring that due

process is upheld to reduce the chances of false convictions. The Office of Juvenile Jus-

tice and Delinquency Prevention has published a set best-practices for the interview-

ing of children to achieve this balance. This article conducts a statutory analysis to

determine if statesare currently following the recommendations of the OJJDP.

Key words: children, police, interview, statute.

According to the 2016 Child Maltreatment Report, the national number of child

victims of abuse and neglect has increased by three percent since 2012, from an estimated

656,000 child victims to 676,000 (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services,

2016). It is possible that the increase in victims in this time period is merely due to

increased reporting by citizens and state agencies. However, the large amount of victims

in either 2012 or 2016 demonstrates a large population of victims that law enforcement

must interview. The forensic interview is commonly used by law enforcement, forensic

specialists, multidisciplinary interview professionals, medical professionals, and child

advocates to discover any relevant and important information of the criminal act by wit-

nesses of a crime involving a child victim or witness (NCAC, 2012). In cases of child

abuse the victim is often the only witness to the crime, and a child victim’s forensic

Michael Klein is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice, and Geog-

raphy at Winona State University. He received his Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal Justice from Wash-

ington State University. His research interests include corrections and courts.

Caitlin Dorsch is a graduate student in the Department of Criminology at Lynchburg College.

Craig Hemmens is a Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Washing-

ton State University. He has published 20 books and more than 200 articles, dealing with a variety of legal

issues in criminal justice.

Juvenile and Family Court Journal 71, No. 2

©2020 National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges

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