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From: Jasper
Date: 8/1/04
Time: 4:28:49 PM
Remote Name: 69.212.37.61
Buster made an interesting observation on the July board about frame-up. When I was researching The Smoking Gun I noticed a pattern of frame-ups in the movies, which applies to real homicide investigations. We all saw it in the O.J. case and in several cases since then.
Homicide detectives and county prosecutors simply do no consider the possibility of a frame-up when gathering evidence and putting together a case against the suspect who fits the evidence. They don’t even consider other suspects once they have found enough evidence to convince them that they have a good chance of getting a conviction.
I don’t think that this mindset is any different from other professionals. Over the years they build up a bank of experience that tells them what to expect when they see certain things. They see some things so often that they just accept them or reject them on the basis of what they are accustomed to seeing.
When I was an automotive sculptor I learned that some design and engineering problems have the same solutions. You see the problem and you use the solution. Nine times out of ten it’s the correct solution. You know whether you got it right or wrong because it ether works or it doesn’t. Occasionally hotshots like me got fooled – all of us did – by SIMILARITIES to design or model-making problems that weren’t what they appeared to be. When my job shifted primarily to engineering, I discovered that THE LESS I knew about old solutions to some problems the more likely it was that I could solve them.
When I got audited on my income tax several years ago I learned that it was because I made too many charitable contributions. That’s a red flag for the IRS. If too much of your money goes to charity they assume you’re lying and proceed accordingly. I’ll give you long odds that nine times out of ten they are right.
A professional poker player never draws to an inside straight because the odds of drawing a card that completes the straight are exceedingly unfavorable.
The same thing undoubtedly happens with homicide cops and prosecutors. Evidence points to a suspect. In an overwhelming percentage of cases it means they’ve got the right guy. But the difference between them and model-makers, engineers, IRS investigators and professional poker players is they usually don’t have the means or the inclination to see exceptions to the rules.
A man with overwhelming evidence against him claims that he was framed. So what? Most guilty people with overwhelming evidence against them claim that they were framed. If the police and prosecutors play they odds they will ignore the evidence that says their suspect WAS framed. Homicide detectives don’t get ahead by being right. They get ahead by making arrests that can be successfully prosecuted. Prosecutors get ahead by successfully prosecuting the accused.
The lesson for anyone who wants to kill somebody and frame somebody else for doing it is clear. The odds of getting away with it are exceeding favorable. –Jasper