Recalibrating the risk of false confession wrongful convictions: Interrogation tactics and inverse probability
Abstract
False confession wrongful convictions (FCWCs) are a serious failure of the criminal justice system. Although scholars have identified interrogation tactics thought to elevate this risk, existing research rarely estimates the population-level probability that legally permissible methods will produce an FCWC. Instead, inference relies on outcome-selected case series and laboratory diagnosticity ratios that ignore base rates and the far larger universe of interrogations without false confessions. This article offers a methodological recalibration. We formalize the outcome-selection problem and apply inverse probability logic to derive posterior FCWC risk integrating base rates, sensitivity, and specificity. Using Monte Carlo simulation, we synthesize available empirical evidence across a wide parameter space. Across these specifications, median posterior estimates of the probability of a false confession wrongful conviction associated with lawful interrogation tactics cluster near 1 %. We conclude by introducing an Acceptability Curve that clarifies how normative judgments about tolerable error shape policy conclusions.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Deception detection and forensic psychology
Criminal Law and Evidence
Legal processes and jurisprudence
Publication details
- Journal / source
- CrimRxiv
- Publication date
- 30 January 2026
- Language
- EN
- Document type
- Preprint