Lack of Videotape in Etan Patz Could Affect Case

ProPublica reports on how the criminal prosecution of Etan Patz's alleged killer might have been jeopardized because police did not tape the interrogation: the "interrogation room, it turns out, was fully equipped to do what a growing body of expert opinion has insisted be done in such moments: a full videotaping of a suspect’s interaction with detectives, from the start of an interrogation through any possible formal confession. Judges, defense lawyers, and even many prosecutors have come to see such comprehensive videotaping as the single most important factor in securing reliable confessions and preventing the wrongful convictions that can stem from false confessions. In New Jersey, where Hernandez was being questioned, taping interrogations in homicide cases has been required by law since 2005. The detectives, however, never turned the cameras on during what would become seven hours of interrogation. They remained off, in fact, until 2:57 that afternoon, when Hernandez was finally ready to formally confess."

ProPublica further reports that the accused killer's defense counsel is going to seek to have the confession ruled to be illegitimate.