The Pressure to Confess

I'll be honest. I absolutely did not know what to write for my first post. But lately, I've been thinking I should be doing more. So… here goes. I keep wondering: why people confess to things they didn't do, or what goes through someone's head when they're on the stand — under oath— and lie, especially when it comes to something as important as a child’s future? I want to explore ways to prevent this, and ensure the right people have custody over a child, and the scales of justice are just that: just.

 I chose this topic because many times — on TV and in reality — people are convinced into saying things that aren't true, and that these false claims often benefit the person they are lying for, and in some way, the person lying. There are times when the lie is told out of spite, out of loyalty or even out of spite. 

What I’ve observed is that this happens far too much in the case of teenagers, like myself. Justice shouldn't be coerced or doctored. It should be raw and unfiltered. But often times this is just not the case. 

Starting this project was exciting, but also kind of overwhelming — there’s so much to learn, and I want to make sure I focus on the right parts. But I know this is something I care about, so I’m ready to keep going, to make bright the inner workings in the dark, closeted corners of the mind where fear and pressure have the ability to twist reality. 

So, I've been reading up on the subject, and I've found that there are three main reasons as to why someone might falsely confess: 

1. Voluntary confessions — where people do it on their own, maybe to seek attention or protect someone else.
   
   

2. Coerced confessions — where manipulation from law enforcement or even family members makes the person believe pleading guilty is better than taking the risk of going to trial, or having the truth come out anyway in a more "name dragged through the mud" way. 

   3. Compliant confessions — where the person. confesses just to get a reward or to stop the interrogation, even though it’s not the truth.

It is heartbreaking to know that for so many people, this is their reality. It's not right. So, I’ll keep researching, keep exploring and keep writing will do my best to educate myself — and maybe help change — how we approach fear, pressure and its link to justice to — really make a difference.