LYNCHBURG, Va. – Law enforcement from across the Commonwealth were in Lynchburg Friday to learn a new philosophy from Justice 3D Consulting.
Mark Mackizer, co-owner, and retired FBI special agent said the training goes against traditional modules of interviewing suspects.
“It’s actually tailored and focused on the type of individual you’re interviewing, pertaining to the personality; and it’s more of a conversation-based approach instead of a hard question and answer,” said Mackizer.
Mike Milnor, co-owner and retired Altavista police chief, said their training is called “empathy-based interrogation.”
“The empathy doesn’t mean that you feel sorry for the person, that you agree with what they say; but it means that you are able to step into their shoes,” said Milnor.
The three-day course is a collaboration with the Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Nearly 40 law enforcement officials from across the commonwealth were in Lynchburg.
Detective Michael Wells was one of them, learning better ways to build relationships with suspects.
“Instead of just, kind of, telling them what I think [in an interview], I’ll tell them like, ‘hey, we can start wherever you want. I want you to feel comfortable talking to me,” said Wells.
All while getting more information from them.
“Rapport building is important to our suspects, too, because people that are suspected of crime are people, too,” Wells added.
Mackizer said their philosophy is based on the FBI’s High-Value Detainee Interrogation Group.
“The research is presented in, ‘this is why you say things this way, or do things in a specific way.’ Statistically, this is more positive to get people to provide information,” said Mackizer.
The group plans to teach more than 1,000 officers across the country this year.