False confessions - AutoZone tagged for 7.5 million
http://www.counterpunch.org/nader05202006.html
Last month, we learned more about the way this works from a trial in the Superior Court of San Diego County. A civil jury struck a blow for corporate accountability, socking AutoZone with a verdict of $7.5 million in punitive damages.
The case stemmed from events several years ago, when a store manager became convinced that one of his employees (a loyal worker with a sterling reputation) had stolen $800. The manager followed the playbook. He had a security guard grill the employee in a small office for almost three hours, confronting him with false evidence and threatening his discharge and arrest unless he confessed. If he did confess, he was assured, he could pay the company back and keep his job, and the matter would remain private.
...
In the case of the AutoZone employee, the company didn't even keep its coercive promise -- it fired him almost immediately after his confession and took the amount he "stole" out of his last paycheck. But Joaquin Robles turned out to be the wrong person to mess with. His lawsuit not only gave him justice, but also shed the spotlight on the corporate coercion industry. The trial exposed the manual used by AutoZone's so-called "loss prevention" managers and produced testimony from other employees about similarly coercive treatment.
The episode exemplifies the grandeur of the civil justice system, with ordinary citizens holding the powerful accountable and establishing that blatant violations of social norms will not be tolerated. Punitive damages play an important role in that process. This case first went to trial several years ago, and a jury found that the AutoZone manager "falsely imprisoned" Robles, and awarded $73,000 in compensatory damages. The trial judge would not allow Robles' attorney to ask the jury for punitive damages. The Court of Appeal of California, Fourth Appellate District reversed that decision, holding that Robles had the right to argue to the jury that AutoZone's policies were sufficiently outrageous as to warrant punitive damages. The case was finally retried in March of this year. Now, AutoZone is $7.5 million poorer (or at least will be if the verdict survives the inevitable appeal) but perhaps a bit wiser.
Justice is served. At least until the appeal.
http://www.counterpunch.org/nader05062006.htmlSome of the tactics are obviously deplorable. For example, interrogators exaggerate or fabricate evidence -- for example, falsely telling a suspect that eyewitnesses saw him commit the crime. They often imply that the suspect will receive lenient treatment if he confesses and the most severe punishment if he refuses. Many false confessors are young or borderline mentally retarded, but the interrogation tactics taught to police could break down anyone. (In one social science experiment, students at Williams College falsely confessed to misconduct when confronted with bogus evidence.)
The Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution protects a person from being a "witness against himself." All too often that is what happens not on the witness stand but in the police station, and even after a person has been read his rights. The spirit and sometimes letter of the Fifth Amendment are violated routinely as such police cajole and bully innocent people to confess. Prosecutors, judges, and juries usually ratify the error because they can't believe the confessor innocent only adding to the suspect's Kafkaesque nightmare.
Why would the police engage in outrageous tactics that implicate the innocent? For the same reason that prosecutors, judges, and juries play their roles in this tragedy they are convinced that no one would actually confess if he were innocent. Since we now know that this intuition is false, we need to take measures that guard against false confessions. Hirsch's website proposes a range of reforms, including mandatory taping of interrogations. But, he suggests, the most important reform is education.
Everyone must recognize that false confessions can and do occur. The realization is particularly important among law enforcement and judges -- but also everyday citizens. This is partly because everyday citizens comprise juries, and it is typically juries who convict false confessors. Ordinary citizens also elect representatives, and some of the necessary reforms require legislation.
Again, nothing will happen until we overcome the intuition that innocent people don't confess. How strong is that intuition? Even /after/ DNA exoneration, many defendants remain incarcerated or have to face another trial, because prosecutors or judges still refuse to believe that the confession was false. Sometimes prosecutors concoct an entirely new theory of the case (for example, that the defendant was an accomplice rather than the actual perpetrator) supported by zero evidence.
Were I on a jury, I think I would refuse to believe a confession.
http://www.truthaboutfalseconfessions.com/
Last month, we learned more about the way this works from a trial in the Superior Court of San Diego County. A civil jury struck a blow for corporate accountability, socking AutoZone with a verdict of $7.5 million in punitive damages.
The case stemmed from events several years ago, when a store manager became convinced that one of his employees (a loyal worker with a sterling reputation) had stolen $800. The manager followed the playbook. He had a security guard grill the employee in a small office for almost three hours, confronting him with false evidence and threatening his discharge and arrest unless he confessed. If he did confess, he was assured, he could pay the company back and keep his job, and the matter would remain private.
...
In the case of the AutoZone employee, the company didn't even keep its coercive promise -- it fired him almost immediately after his confession and took the amount he "stole" out of his last paycheck. But Joaquin Robles turned out to be the wrong person to mess with. His lawsuit not only gave him justice, but also shed the spotlight on the corporate coercion industry. The trial exposed the manual used by AutoZone's so-called "loss prevention" managers and produced testimony from other employees about similarly coercive treatment.
The episode exemplifies the grandeur of the civil justice system, with ordinary citizens holding the powerful accountable and establishing that blatant violations of social norms will not be tolerated. Punitive damages play an important role in that process. This case first went to trial several years ago, and a jury found that the AutoZone manager "falsely imprisoned" Robles, and awarded $73,000 in compensatory damages. The trial judge would not allow Robles' attorney to ask the jury for punitive damages. The Court of Appeal of California, Fourth Appellate District reversed that decision, holding that Robles had the right to argue to the jury that AutoZone's policies were sufficiently outrageous as to warrant punitive damages. The case was finally retried in March of this year. Now, AutoZone is $7.5 million poorer (or at least will be if the verdict survives the inevitable appeal) but perhaps a bit wiser.
Justice is served. At least until the appeal.
http://www.counterpunch.org/nader05062006.htmlSome of the tactics are obviously deplorable. For example, interrogators exaggerate or fabricate evidence -- for example, falsely telling a suspect that eyewitnesses saw him commit the crime. They often imply that the suspect will receive lenient treatment if he confesses and the most severe punishment if he refuses. Many false confessors are young or borderline mentally retarded, but the interrogation tactics taught to police could break down anyone. (In one social science experiment, students at Williams College falsely confessed to misconduct when confronted with bogus evidence.)
The Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution protects a person from being a "witness against himself." All too often that is what happens not on the witness stand but in the police station, and even after a person has been read his rights. The spirit and sometimes letter of the Fifth Amendment are violated routinely as such police cajole and bully innocent people to confess. Prosecutors, judges, and juries usually ratify the error because they can't believe the confessor innocent only adding to the suspect's Kafkaesque nightmare.
Why would the police engage in outrageous tactics that implicate the innocent? For the same reason that prosecutors, judges, and juries play their roles in this tragedy they are convinced that no one would actually confess if he were innocent. Since we now know that this intuition is false, we need to take measures that guard against false confessions. Hirsch's website proposes a range of reforms, including mandatory taping of interrogations. But, he suggests, the most important reform is education.
Everyone must recognize that false confessions can and do occur. The realization is particularly important among law enforcement and judges -- but also everyday citizens. This is partly because everyday citizens comprise juries, and it is typically juries who convict false confessors. Ordinary citizens also elect representatives, and some of the necessary reforms require legislation.
Again, nothing will happen until we overcome the intuition that innocent people don't confess. How strong is that intuition? Even /after/ DNA exoneration, many defendants remain incarcerated or have to face another trial, because prosecutors or judges still refuse to believe that the confession was false. Sometimes prosecutors concoct an entirely new theory of the case (for example, that the defendant was an accomplice rather than the actual perpetrator) supported by zero evidence.
Were I on a jury, I think I would refuse to believe a confession.
http://www.truthaboutfalseconfessions.com/