PENNSYLVANIA
Big Trial
Monday, March 11, 2013
By Ralph Cipriano
for Bigtrial.net
On Jan. 28, 2010, Detective Andrew Snyder drove up to Graterford Prison in Northeast Philadelphia to spring “Billy Doe” out of jail, and drive him down to the district attorney’s office in Center City for questioning.
When Detective Snyder and Billy Doe got to the D.A.’s office, Billy’s parents were waiting for him. And, according to what Billy Doe told the grand jury, so was Assistant District Attorney Mariana Sorensen. Detective Snyder recorded what happened next on four pages of typed notes. Here’s Snyder’s first two sentences:
Picked up [Billy Doe] from Graterford Prison. [Billy Doe’s] parents … were present during the interview.
On Jan. 28, 2010, Billy Doe, the man who claimed he was raped by two priests and a Catholic school teacher, was 21 years old. He was not under 18, so there was no reason for his parents to sit in on the interview. The longstanding practice at the district attorney’s office, and the Philadelphia Police Department, is to interview an adult complainant by himself; the parents typically would have been interviewed separately. The interviews are usually conducted in a Q. and A. format and recorded on an “Investigation Interview Record.” In cop lingo, the Investigation Interview Record is known in the D.A.’s office and the Philadelphia Police Department as a “483,” because of the form number on the bottom of the page.
When the detective is through asking questions, the subject of the interview is asked to read over the questions and answers on the 483, make corrections, and finally, sign the document.
Did the district attorney’s office bend the rules to let Billy’s father, a Philadelphia police sergeant, and his mother sit in on the D.A.’s interview with their son? It sure looks like it. Also, why was there was no official Investigation Interview Record done in the traditional Q. and A. format with either Billy Doe or his parents?
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