WHEREAS law enforcement testimony as to confessions and other inculpatory statements are extraordinarily persuasive evidence to juries;
WHEREAS false confessions and false law enforcement testimony alleging that a suspect confessed have resulted in an untold number of wrongful convictions, many carrying death sentences;
WHEREAS a videotape recording from beginning to end provides the most objective means for evaluating what occurred during an interrogation, what the suspect and law enforcement agents said and did, any alleged waiver of the suspect’s rights to remain silent and to the presence of an attorney, and the accuracy of any statement;
WHEREAS videotaped interrogations have promoted effective law enforcement and provided generally reliable and accurate evidence, thereby furthering the search for the truth in those jurisdictions where it is the required or accepted practice;
WHEREAS such recording is, in the words of the Alaska Supreme Court, “a reasonable and necessary safeguard, essential to the adequate protection of the accused’s right to counsel, his right against self incrimination, and, ultimately, his right to a fair trial”;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers supports the videotaping of law enforcement interrogations from beginning to end and calls upon Congress and the state legislatures to pass legislation mandating this practice.
Cincinnati, Ohio
