People confess to murders and other crimes that they didn't commit, even without interrogation. Why?
2007-01-13 02:29:32 · 12 answers · asked by Save the Fish 2 in Social Science ➔ Psychology
some people that are mentally disturbed ,feel as if they should be punished,so they confess to crimes they didnt commit in order to be punished for their own,imaginary crimes.others,also mentally disturbed,crave a sense of importance,so they seek "fame"(not grasping the difference between fame and infamy!) by confessing to various high-profile crimes.they want to be in the papers,on tv.all they think of is the attention-they either have no self-worth and crave any kind of attention,even negative,or they are ego-maniacs who would like to be thought of as a clever,devious and edgy person.no one with a grasp on actual reality would confess,sans interrogation,to something they did not do,so these individuals are clearly in need of psychological help,once their innocence is ascertained.
2007-01-13 02:42:36 · answer #1 · answered by kyra k 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
There are various reasons for people confessing to crimes that they didn't commit. Some are coerced after hours of interrogation, food and sleep deprivation, and intimidation. While, others simply want attention in weird ways. The best example is John Michael Carr, the idiot that claimed to have killed Jon Benet Ramsey. He is a total media whore and knew exactly what he was doing. Fortunately, another predator is off the streets,but, at the huge expense of tax payers and a media circus that was out of control.
2007-01-13 10:41:43 · answer #2 · answered by lynnguys 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Some becasue they have gotten away with somthing at some point and have a pathological need to be punished. Some have a deep seated need for attention. Some actually believe that they did commit the crime for which they are confessing. And some do it becasue they want to divert attention from the real culprit and make things more difficult for law enforcement. I actualy teach people how ot do that last one.
2007-01-13 11:32:41 · answer #3 · answered by kveldulf_gondlir 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I choose to believe they are way out on a plain Others aren't on, like we are on on level then and they are x out, just gone between the ears, I think these people have a hard time feeding and taking care of them selves....and very extra much need attention...I don't know what kind, but surely there is a medicine for that. Not to make fun of them, but they seem to hurt people very deeply, not knowingly, but definitely they do this. I also think people that aren't social, a place to run their ideas by someone are also the ones that kill people sometimes. Like the minister wife that shot him in the back this last summer. Up state somewhere, it all on courttv website, but it all came from an investment in a large sum of money, 30 or 35 grand into a con going around from another country I think, but, couldn't these two people have worked this out? NO, guess not, both looked intelligent too. what a shame, with the kids and all. It just seems someone could have seen or felt that things were very off. who can say....
2007-01-13 10:41:20 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
That is a funny thing. In an Agatha Christie mystery I read, two people who actually HAD commited the murder confessed to it because they made it seem as though they were covering up for somebody else. They also purposely made little slips and said stuff like (when the man found out that the guy had been killed with a club) said "Oh, but a woman couldn't have done that..." to make it seema as though they were covering up for her. Who knows?
2007-01-13 10:40:13 · answer #5 · answered by m4catlover 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
A warm place to sleep and free food is one, especially during the winter. You would be surprised how often it happens, and how often these people fall through the cracks in the system.
Some do it to protect a third party.
Some do it because they have psychiatric disorders that make them think they did it. Or make them want to have done it. (There are people out there who want to do bad things, but don't have the guts. So they accept the punishment for other people's crimes in an effort to make it seem as though they have done it.)
Some do it because they are bored with their lives and it seems to be the only way out.
I'm sure there are other reasons, but I am obligated to go and make pancakes for my kids, so I'm going to have to leave you with that. I hope it helped answer your question.
2007-01-13 10:42:32 · answer #6 · answered by IamBatman 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
A lot do just to get that interrogation over with--get a break, get some rest, be let alone.
Some cover for someone else out of love, devotion, fear, etc.
Some figure the cops have no one else to blame it on, so they might as well just say it was them.
Some might want to be noticed, like a celeb in the newspapers, TV and radio news, etc.--though that's kind of twisted.
2007-01-13 11:43:05 · answer #7 · answered by Holiday Magic 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Some people do it for publicity. Some to protect someone else. Some just to get a lot of attention.
2007-01-13 10:51:04 · answer #8 · answered by Wind and rewind them l time year 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
To get less jail time if there they are seen as a major suspect with a not so tight alibi or to see what jail-life is like.
2007-01-13 10:40:48 · answer #9 · answered by p1ay_7 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yikes! Are these people otherwise out on the street? Tired of Life? I can't imagine!
2007-01-13 10:34:21 · answer #10 · answered by starryeyed 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋