People Vs. Thomas Case Study

Exam 1
Critical Case Review: People v. Thomas 2014

Annelise Baker
RIAP 310 Investigative Psychology for Law Enforcement
Dr. Baughman
1 March 201
THE CASE
Wilhelmina Hicks and Adrian Thomas rushed their four-month-old infant, Matthew Hicks, to a Troy, New York hospital after noticing the child’s unresponsiveness on 21 September 2008. The child later transferred to Albany Medical Center’s PICU for treatment for septic shock. Though the child’s physical and medical status indicated septic shock, a doctor contacted child protective authorities, suspecting blunt force trauma head injuries. Authorities then interrogated the child’s parents.
Two hours into the initial police investigation, Thomas expressed suicidal ideation and

Magid states that, “Virtually all interrogations, or at least virtually all successful interrogations, involve some deception.” Officers commonly use deception and manipulation during interrogations by informing suspects about the existence of conclusive evidence (in which none exists), promising a reward or lighter sentence for cooperation, using emotional appeals, or omit details. Dr. Richard Leo identified types of false confessions, including voluntary false confession, compliant false confession, and persuaded false confession. The In the People v. Thomas case, Adrian Thomas gave a “persuaded false confession,” in which he came to doubt the reliability of his memories, confessing fully to the specific details of Matthew’s murder as the interrogating officers suggested. The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law notes that these types of confessions occur most frequently after “lengthy and psychologically intense interrogations” and that, “once removed from the interrogation environment and its attendant influences and pressures, the persuaded false confessor typically recants his confession.” This is true of the Thomas case, in which Thomas recanted the confession he made during the 10-hour

Thomas case and cases involving false confessions. Studies show that individuals can develop detailed false memories resulting from priming and suggestions during the interview process. Intoxication, mental illness or impairment, repetition of facts or information, priming and suggestion, sleep deprivation, and dehydration can increase an individual’s suggestibility and likelihood to recall a false memory. Interrogators can gaslight suspects, causing the suspect to doubt their memory, coercing them into a false confession.
In the People v. Thomas case, Adrian Thomas remained especially vulnerable to suggestibility due to the lengthy interrogation and his diminished emotional state, evident in his 15-hour psychiatric hold. Lead interrogator Sergeant Adam Mason reportedly instructed Adrian Thomas, “You better find that memory right now, Adrian. You’ve got to find that memory. This is important for your son’s life, man.” Officers first suggested Thomas threw the child in frustration after a conflict with his wife. After getting Thomas to agree to this, the officers used a “foot-in-the-door” strategy to escalate the severity of Thomas’ supposed actions. Further, the interrogators coerced Thomas into re-enacted the suggested scene of Matthew’s death, using a clipboard as a stand-in for the infant, and forcefully slamming the clipboard. Through this physical action, the false