criminal psychology-第13章

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


ich　cluster　about　the　desired　secret　and　from　which　its　importance　arises。　If　the　witness　understands　that　he　presents　something　really　important　by　giving　up　his　secret；　surprising　consequences　ensue。

The　relatively　most　important　secret　is　that　of　one's　own　guilt；　and　the　associated　most　suggestive　establishment　of　it；　the　confession；　is　a　very　extraordinary　psychological　problem。＇1＇　In　many　cases　the　reasons　for　confession　are　very　obvious。　The　criminal　sees　that　the　evidence　is　so　complete　that　he　is　soon　to　be　convicted　and　seeks　a　mitigation　of　the　sentence　by　confession；　or　he　hopes　through　a　more　honest　narration　of　the　crime　to　throw　a　great　degree　of　the　guilt　on　another。　In　addition　there　is　a　thread　of　vanity　in　confessionas　among　young　peasants　who　confess　to　a　greater　share　in　a　burglary　than　they　actually　had　（easily　discoverable　by　the　magniloquent　manner　of　describing　their　actual　crime）。　Then　there　are　confessions　made　for　the　sake　of　care　and　winter　lodgings：　the　confession　arising　from　‘‘firm　conviction''　（as　among　political　criminals　and　others）。　There　are　even　confessions　arising　from　nobility；　from　the　wish　to　save　an　intimate；　and　confessions　intended　to　deceive；　and　such　as　occur　especially　in　conspiracy　and　are　made　to　gain　time　（either　for　the　flight　of　the　real　criminal　or　for　the　destruction　of　compromising　objects）。　Generally；　in　the　latter　case；　guilt　is　admitted　only　until　the　plan　for　which　it　was　made　has　succeeded；　then　the　judge　is　surprised　with　well…

＇1＇　Cf。　Lohsing：　‘‘Confession''　in　Gross's　Archiv；　IV；　23；　and　Hausner：　_ibid_。　XIII；　267。

　founded；　regular　and　successful　establishment　of　an　alibi。　Not　infrequently　confession　of　small　crimes　is　made　to　establish　an　alibi　for　a　greater　one。　And　finally　there　are　the　confessions　Catholics＇1＇　are　required　to　make　in　confessional；　and　the　death　bed　confessions。　The　first　are　distinguished　by　the　fact　that　they　are　made　freely　and　that　the　confessee　does　not　try　to　mitigate　his　crime；　but　is　aiming　to　make　amends；　even　when　he　finds　it　hard；　and　desires　even　a　definite　penance。　Death　bed　confessions　may　indeed　have　religious　grounds；　or　the　desire　to　prevent　the　punishment　or　the　further　punishment　of　an　innocent　person。

Although　this　list　of　explicable　confession…types　is　long；　it　is　in　no　way　exhaustive。　It　is　only　a　small　portion　of　all　the　confessions　that　we　receive；　of　these　the　greater　part　remain　more　or　less　unexplained。　Mittermaier＇2＇　has　already　dealt　with　these　acutely　and　cites　examples　as　well　as　the　relatively　well…studied　older　literature　of　the　subject。　A　number　of　cases　may　perhaps　be　explained　through　pressure　of　conscience；　especially　where　there　are　involved　hysterical　or　nervous　persons　who　are　plagued　with　vengeful　images　in　which　the　ghost　of　their　victim　would　appear；　or　in　whose　ear　the　unendurable　clang　of　the　stolen　money　never　ceases；　etc。　If　the　confessor　only　intends　to　free　himself　from　these　disturbing　images　and　the　consequent　punishment　by　means　of　confession；　we　are　not　dealing　with　what　is　properly　called　conscience；　but　more　or　less　with　disease；　with　an　abnormally　excited　imagination。＇3＇　But　where　such　hallucinations　are　lacking；　and　religious　influences　are　absent；　and　the　confession　is　made　freely　in　response　to　mere　pressure；　we　have　a　case　of　conscience；＇4＇another　of　those　terms　which　need　explanation。　I　know　of　no　analogy　in　the　inner　nature　of　man；　in　which　anybody　with　open　eyes　does　himself　exclusive　harm　without　any　contingent　use　being　apparent；　as　is　the　case　in　this　class　of　confession。　There　is　always　considerable　difficulty　in　explaining　these　cases。　One　way　of　explaining　them　is　to　say　that　their　source　is　mere　stupidity

＇1＇　Cf。　the　extraordinary　confession　of　the　wife　of　the　‘‘cannibal''　Bratuscha。　The　latter　had　confessed　to　having　stifled　his　twelve　year　old　daughter；　burned　and　part　by　part　consumed　her。　He　said　his　wife　was　his　accomplice。　The　woman　denied　it　at　first　but　after　going　to　confession　told　the　judge　the　same　story　as　her　husband。　It　turned　out　that　the　priest　had　refused　her　absolution　until　she　‘‘confessed　the　truth。''　But　both　she　and　her　husband　had　confessed　falsely。　The　child　was　alive。　Her　father's　confession　was　pathologically　caused；　her　mother's　by　her　desire　for　absolution。

＇2＇　C。　J。　A。　Mittermaier：　Die　Lehre　vom　Beweise　im　deutsehen　Strafprozess。　Darmstadt　1834。

＇3＇　Poe　calls　such　confessions　pure　perversities。

＇4＇　Cf。　Elsenshaus：　Wesen　u。　Entstehung　des　Gewissens。　Leipzig　1894。

　and　impulsiveness；　or　simply　to　deny　their　occurrence。　But　the　theory　of　stupidity　does　not　appeal　to　the　practitioner；　for　even　if　we　agree　that　a　man　foolishly　makes　a　confession　and　later；　when　he　perceives　his　mistake；　bitterly　regrets　telling　it；　we　still　find　many　confessions　that　are　not　regretted　and　the　makers　of　which　can　in　no　wise　be　accused　of　defective　intelligence。　To　deny　that　there　are　such　is　comfortable　but　wrong；　because　we　each　know　collections　of　cases　in　which　no　effort　could　bring　to　light　a　motive　for　the　confession。　The　confession　was　made　because　the　confessor　wanted　to　make　it；　and　that's　the　whole　story。

The　making　of　a　confession；　according　to　laymen；　ends　the　matter；　but　really；　the　judge's　work　begins　with　it。　As　a　matter　of　caution　all　statutes　approve　confessions　as　evidence　only　when　they　agree　completely　with　the　other　evidence。　Confession　is　a　means　of　proof；　and　not　proof。　Some　objective；　evidentially　concurrent　support　and　confirmation　of　the　confession　is　required。　But　the　same　legal　requirement　necessitates　that　the　value　of　the　concurrent　evidence　shall　depend　on　its　having　been　arrived　at　and　established　independently。　The　existence　of　a　confession　contains　powerful　suggestive　influences　for　judge；　witness；　expert；　for　all　concerned　in　the　case。　If　a　confession　is　made；　all　that　is　perceived　in　the　case　may　be　seen　in　the　light　of　it；　and　experience　teaches　well　enough　how　that　alters　the　situation。　There　is　so　strong　an　inclination　to　pigeonhole　and　adapt　everything　perceived　in　some　given　explanation；　that　the　explanation　is　strained　after；　and　facts　are　squeezed　and　trimmed　until　they　fit　easily。　It　is　a　remarkable　phenomenon；　confirmable　by　all　observers；　that　all　our　perceptions　are　at　first　soft　and　plastic　and　easily　take　form　according　to　the　shape　of　their　predecessors。　They　become　stiff　and　inflexible　only　when　we　have　had　them　for　some　time；　and　have　permitted　them　to　reach　an　equilibrium。　If；　then；　observations　are　made　in　accord　with　certain　notions；　the　plastic　material　is　easily　molded；　excrescences　and　unevenness　are　squeezed　away；　lacun　are　filled　up；　and　if　it　is　at　all　possible；　the　adaptation　is　completed　easily。　Then；　if　a　new　and　quite　different　notion　arises　in　us；　the　alteration　of　the　observed　material　occurs　as　easily　again；　and　only　long　afterwards；　when　the　observation　has　hardened；　do　fresh　alterations　fail。　This　is　a　matter　of　daily　experience；　in　our　professional　as　well　as　in　our　ordinary　affairs。　We　hear　of　a　certain　crime　and　consider　the　earliest　data。　For　one　reason　or　another　we　begin　to　suspect　A　as　the　criminal　The　result　of　an　examination　of　the　premises　is　applied　in　each　detail　　to　this　proposition。　It　fits。　So　does　the　autopsy；　so　do　the　depositions　of　the　witnesses。　Everything　fits。　There　have　indeed　been　difficulties；　but　they　have　been　set　aside；　they　are　attributed　to　inaccurate　observation　and　the　like；the　point　is；that　the　evidence　is　against　A。　Now；　suppose　that　soon　after　B　confesses　the　crime；　this　event　is　so　significant　that　it　sets　aside　at　once　all　the　earlier　reasons　for　suspecting　A；　and　the　theory　of　the　crime　involves　B。　Naturally　the　whole　material　must　now　be　applied　to　B；　and　in　spite　of　the　fact　that　it　at　first　fitted　A；　it　does　now　fit　B。　Here　again　difficulties　arise；　but　they　are　to　be　set　aside　just　as　before。

Now　if　this　is　possible　with　evidence；　written　and　thereby　unalterable；　how　much　more　easily　can　it　be　done　with　testimony　about　to　be　taken；　which　may　readily　be　colored　by　the　already　presented　confession。　The　educational　conditions　involve　now　the　judge　and　his　assistants　on　the　one　hand；　and　the　witnesses　on　the　other。