Homicide: A Year On The Killing Streets

The author David Simon writes an informative article on the topic of a homicide unit in Baltimore. He writes this to let the citizens of Baltimore know how interrogation works. His book, Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets gives us a very detailed view on this. Homicide detectives work hard to get information out of suspects. They like to give their suspects a false hope of becoming free if they give up the info. They call this hope an imaginary window, an escape hatch in which they might be able to crawl out of. When done correctly the detectives can get all the information they need from the person. The guiltiest person is constantly the first person looking for an out; after all, if you’re not guilty what are you scared of? The interrogation is closely related to a performance, it that helps the detectives get “common ground” with his suspects when non-exist. When a suspect gets comfortable, he/she is more likely to talk. This “performance” is highly important because in Baltimore, a
Deceitfulness is against many peoples religion. In Christianity lying is a sin. This job requires people to disregard their religion in order to gain information; however, this information could save lives so in a way it has great morals.
• Pathos – The detectives need to play along with the suspects. It is highly important to get the information out, even if it means giving them false hope. When people are happy they are more likely to give out information. This false hope is very powerful, and some of the information will save lives.
• Logos- It is logical that the detective do whatever they can to get information from criminals. If they perform poorly the criminal won’t want to talk. Their information could go a long way in an investigation. The smallest amount of info could help find the criminal that they are searching for. Lives need to be saved and if this is the only logical method, so be it.