DRUG ANALYSIS — science or art?.
DRUG ANALYSIS — science or art?
In the practice of investigation, there are often cases when the only thread that can be seized upon to reach the criminal is the testimony of victims or eyewitnesses. And there are also frequent cases when victims or eyewitnesses, under the influence of the emotional shock of the crime or for some other reasons, cannot remember anything at the time of questioning. In such cases, drug analysis can help.
Here is one example. At dawn, a woman of about twenty was found in front of the entrance to the city hospital. She was in a state of insanity and did not remember her name. The woman was wearing very nice clothes, an expensive watch, a diamond ring, but she had no items that could identify her. Doctors found minor injuries on the woman's face and hands, as well as signs of rape. For two days, the woman was in a state of complete amnesia, which, as it turned out later, was a manifestation of psychological shock.
At the request of the local police, the woman was transferred to the University of Minnesota Clinic, where she was interrogated using the drug analysis method. Under the influence of pharmacological drugs, the woman provided complete information about herself: time and place of birth, place of residence, reasons for coming to the city.
Under anesthesia, the woman told what happened (everything was, of course, recorded on a tape recorder). Around eight in the evening, she left her room and met a young man in the hotel lobby, they got to talking, and he invited her to a nearby nightclub. They left the club at about 11 in the evening and got into the young man's car, parked in the parking lot. The young man offered to take them for a ride to the nearby lakes; in a deserted lakeside park, he suddenly attacked her, she lost consciousness, what happened next — she does not remember, she only remembers that she asked to be taken to the hospital. The victim described in detail the appearance of the suspect and his car. The criminal was caught. After the interrogation, the victim spent two more days in the hospital, during which time the effects of amnesia disappeared.
The term «narcoanalysis» appeared in 1943, that is, almost 20 years after interrogation under anesthesia began to be used. With an intravenous injection of barbiturate drugs (usually scopolamine, sodium amitel or sodium pentothal are used), a «twilight» state of consciousness occurs, the so-called «semi-consciousness», in which the «censorship of consciousness» is removed and deep, true experiences and attitudes are released. In this state, the patient answers questions asked of him with childlike simplicity and spontaneity.
The idea of using the side effects of anesthesia in practice was first conceived by doctors: using a weak anesthesia to relieve pain during childbirth, they noticed that women would tell stories about themselves and their loved ones that they would never tell in a normal state. In 1922, a doctor from Texas, Robert Ernest House, who is called the «father of truth serum», published an article in a Texas medical journal entitled «The Use of Scopolamine in Criminology». In 1931, this article was reprinted in an American journal of police science. Dr. House conducted numerous experiments, selecting the optimal dosages of drugs and the frequency of injections, and came to the conclusion that, if the necessary conditions were met, his method was a sure bet. An interesting phenomenon was revealed in these experiments: in a normal state, patients could not remember what they said while under anesthesia.
In September 1924, speaking to police officers in Houston, Dr. House said: “I have succeeded in creating a method of extracting from the subject’s memory, against his will, information “hidden” at the subconscious level of the psyche. This is achieved by injecting a certain dose of scopolamine (the so-called truth serum) into the blood. This drug induces either deep sleep or wakefulness with consciousness turned off, and in this state of “artificial unconsciousness” the individual will answer questions like a child, “honestly and directly, without trying to evade the answer, deceive or cheat.” After conducting numerous experiments, Dr. House came to the conclusion that there is no person who could resist the action of scopolamine, and that the method he created is as reliable as fingerprints.
At a time when the practice of extracting confessions was commonplace, the use of truth serum seemed to contribute to the humanization of justice and the protection of human rights, eliminating the need to resort to «third degree interrogation.»
Neither the creator of the truth serum nor his numerous followers imagined the decisive resistance their method would face in the courts. The first precedent was in 1926 in the state of Missouri, when the lawyer of a man accused of rape tried to use the testimony of an expert doctor who had interrogated the defendant under anesthesia as evidence of his client's innocence. The court found the expert's testimony unconvincing and scientifically untenable. Since then, in the Old and New Worlds, courts have not accepted testimony obtained under anesthesia, primarily because this testimony is obtained «in an altered state of consciousness» and, therefore, can be a product of psychological pressure. In addition, subsequent experiments have forced a more reserved attitude to the reliability of the drug analysis method itself. As it turned out, there is a category of people who are capable of lying even under anesthesia, and people who give truthful testimony say what they believe to be the truth, although this does not always correspond to reality.However, one should not rush to the conclusion that drug analysis has not lived up to expectations. The emphasis has simply shifted over time: the method began to be used not so much to obtain confessions as to «revive» memory. This direction of using the method was laid down by the creator of truth serum himself.
After World War II, drug analysis began to be used to treat war psychoses (drug analysis is sometimes called rapid psychoanalysis) and to treat amnesia in people who have suffered a concussion. Psychiatrists use drug analysis to recognize simulation during sanity assessments.
In the investigation process, drug analysis is used to «help recall» the events surrounding the crime to a witness or victim (as in the case described at the beginning of the article). Nowadays, drug analysis is rarely used during interrogation of suspects and only in cases where the verbal testimony of the person being interrogated differs from the results of a polygraph test. Although, as already mentioned, testimony obtained under anesthesia does not have evidentiary value, it can be a source of valuable information and help form an internal conviction in the investigator about the guilt or innocence of the person being interrogated. With such information, the investigator can focus his efforts in the right direction and produce evidence that will be unconditionally accepted by the court.
Interrogation of a suspect under anesthesia is a complex and labor-intensive procedure and is carried out in a hospital setting. After such a decision has been made regarding a specific person, a working group is formed, which may include representatives of the defense, prosecution, judges, psychiatrists, psychologists, foreign language experts, experimental scientists, and investigators. The selection of specialists is dictated by the specifics of the case under investigation, but mandatory criteria are scientific objectivity and usefulness, knowledge of the personality traits of the suspect and the details of the case. The team must include an anesthesiologist: he or she administers pharmacological drugs in the dosage necessary to achieve the condition required for interrogation.
In the initial interview, the «chief interrogator» establishes psychological contact with the subject, tries to gain trust, convincing them of the impartiality and objectivity of the persons conducting the examination, that the procedure is safe for health, and, most importantly, that the method works flawlessly and the truth will certainly be established. The constitutional rights allowing a person to refuse the examination are explained. They are also warned that if they agree, the results of the drug analysis may be used in a future investigation and trial.
Interrogation under anesthesia requires the highest qualifications and skill from both the anesthesiologist and the interrogator, coordination in their work and mutual understanding.
After the person being interrogated begins to confess, he is slowly brought out of the state of anesthesia until he begins to speak clearly and distinctly, so that all his testimony can be recorded on a tape recorder. In order to emphasize some of the person being interrogated's answers, special drugs are used, the effect of which is still being studied.
At the end of the drug interrogation, an interview is conducted with the person being interrogated, at which all members of the team are present. He is shown a recording of the testimony given under anesthesia, and he is often so surprised that he confirms this testimony in a procedurally acceptable form.
A professionally conducted drug analysis helps to obtain a confession from the person guilty of a crime. Often, its result is the removal of suspicion from the innocent. The results of the drug analysis can become a source of new investigative versions.
For more than 70 years of existence (this fact alone speaks in favor of the method), drug analysis has caused heated debates and has more opponents than supporters. It remains more of an art than a science, and much effort from scientists and practitioners will be required before drug analysis takes its place among traditional methods of crime investigation.