Taping of Police Interviews Sought

A state commission Thursday called for police to tape interrogations of crime suspects in serious felonies and to videotape homicide interrogations. The proposal is meant to prevent wrongful convictions.

Former Atty. Gen. John L. Van de Kamp, chairman of the California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice, said the proposal could prevent intimidation by interrogators while also protecting police from false misconduct charges.

The panel called on the Legislature to mandate the taping through a new statute. Under the law, if interrogations are not recorded, jurors would be instructed to view confessions with caution.

The commission will hold a public hearing on the proposed law in Los Angeles in June.

Van de Kamp said the cost to police departments of implementing the program could be offset by avoiding lawsuit payouts to wrongfully convicted people. “It only takes a couple of big ones to make this cost-effective,” Van de Kamp said.

Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley expressed initial support for the idea. “In general, memorialization of contacts between a suspect and law enforcement investigators is helpful. A videotape is a step above audiotape in terms of its evidentiary value to prosecutors and, ultimately, to jurors,” he said.

Santa Monica defense lawyer William J. Genego, who represented a man wrongly convicted because of a false confession, praised the idea. “It would be an excellent reform that would help everyone in the process: the suspect, police, courts and the public.”

The Legislature established the commission to study the administration of justice in California and “determine the extent to which it failed in the past.” It has no enforcement powers and is limited to recommending reforms to state and local authorities.