Investigative interviewing: rights, research, regulation, Edited by TOM WILLIAMSON, Foreword by the HONOURABLE JUSTICE PETER CORY, Cullompton, Devon: Willan Publishing (2005), pp. 370, ISBN 1‐84392‐124‐3

Abstract

Images of the ill treatment of detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq appeared just a few months following the First Investigative Interviewing Conference held in Quebec in February 2004. This book is a collection of the research papers presented at the conference and highlights the importance and application of investigative interviewing in an age that is challenging human rights and freedoms.The goal of investigative interviewing is to elicit information for intelligence or prosecution purposes. Reflected in the title, the book is divided into three sections: developments in rights, developments in research, and developments in regulation. These sections are key to the understanding and application of investigative interviewing within the military or judicial contexts. Each chapter is a contribution from academics and practitioners who provide evidence from North America and the UK. They argue for the professionalisation of investigative interviewing and discuss the methods and skills required to do soa value for those who interrogate or with an interest in interrogation.Section one discusses the development in human rights in relation to interrogation. The chapters in this section focus primarily on 'the war on terrorism' and draw from the firsthand experience of interviewing al-Qaeda subjects, officials, and detainees at Guantanamo Bay to argue for the professionalisation of investigative interviewing.Tom Williamson, in chapter one, discusses investigative interviewing and human rights in response to the 'war on terrorism'. Williamson argues for investigative interviewing and examines two models for dealing with terrorism: one based on traditional criminal investigation and the justice process, and the other based on new intelligence-led approaches that is not driven by a prosecution outcome. Both models require professionals to possess an understanding of the psychology of custody and skills in humane methods of interviewing. This chapter outlines the need for new legislation and trained professionals in order to remain a democratic society that values human rights and freedoms.Chapter two, by Michael G. Gelles and colleagues, is based on extensive interviews with al-Qaeda operatives and discusses the challenges of interviewing suspects in the 'war on terrorism' who have different beliefs, ideologies, cultures, and life experiences. This chapter provides an understanding of jihad and the history of Sunni extremism and highlights the importance of the relationship between the interviewer and the interviewee in