Forensic Hypnosis

May 2, 2023 1

A presentation byMuktesh Chander IPS

BE,LLB, MA(Cr.),DCL,DHRM,Cert SQC&ORFIETE,MCSI

Addl. Commissioner of PoliceCrime, Delhi Police

May 2, 2023 2Muktesh Chander

Ignorance Controversies Mysteries Negative Connotations Different perceptions Skepticism


Stage Magicians Occultists Frivolous Practitioners Faith Healers Fiction books, movies & television


Truth from MythFact from FictionScience from Superstition


Since ancient timesEmbers papyrus of Egypt 1550 BC“Sammohini” finds mention in Sushruta Samhita (600BC) and in “Bhoj Prabhandh” of Ballala Sen 527 AD.Sleep Temples of Asclepius, Ancient GreekMeditation


Franz Anton Mesmer (1774) a Viennese Physician discovered what he called “Animal Magnetism”.Excitement due to discovery of electricity and Magnetism.


ExtravagantFlamboyantDramatisationRich clients


John Elliotson 1791-1868 a London PhysicianDr. James Esdaile 1808-1859 a Scottish surgeon of East India Co.BernheimSigmund Freud

Contd..


Dr. Auguste Ambroise LiebeaultDr. Jean Martin CharcotAbbe Jose Faria from Goa (published book “Causas do Sono Lucido”)


Statue of Jose Custodia da Faria (Abbe Faria) in front of Adil Khan Palace (Old Secretariat) on the bank of river Mandovi, Panaji, Goa created by sculptor Ram Chandra Pandurang Kamat and

installed in 1945. Photograph by Hari

Sirohi.


‘Sammohini Vidya’Animal magnetismMesmerismSomnambulismLucid SleepMonoideism

Contd..


Auto suggestionBiofeedbackRelaxation TherapyNeurolinguistic Programming


Hypnos= Sleep (Greek)Coined by Dr. James Braid, English PhysicianHypnosis is misnomer


Approval of British Medical Association (1955)American Medical Association (1958)CanadaAustraliaIMA still does not recognise Hypnosis

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It is not magic or trickIt is not sleepIt is not unconsciousnessIt is not power of strong mind over weakIt is not control of hypnotist over his subject


British Medical Association defines hypnotism as “A temporary condition of altered attention in the subject which may be induced by another person and in which a variety of phenomena may appear spontaneously or in response to verbal or another stimuli… " Contd..


The Hypnotism Act of 1952 of UK defines hypnotism as "any act or process which produces or is intended to produce in any person any form of induced sleep or trance in which the susceptibility of the mind...is increased or intended to be increased".


1. Law of concentrated attentionWhenever attention is concentrated on an idea over and over again, it spontaneously tends to realize itself

2. Law of reversed effectThe harder one tries to do something, the less chance one has of success

3. Law of Dominant effect.A strong emotion/suggestion tends to replace a weaker one


1. People are credulous 2. Any physiological or psychological

change tends to appear in a person if he is expecting it


Conscious mind -------------- 10%Sub-conscious mind --------------- 90%In hypnosis brain switches to Alpha Level(EEG response) and it is an altered state of conscious with focused attention.Ultimately all hypnosis is self hypnosis only.


Pain reliefStress ManagementRemoving fears/phobiasSelf improvementHypnotherapy


Application of Hypnosis to VictimWitnessAccused ?In the process of Criminal Justice System


Ability to recall details can be enhanced (Hypermnesia)Association with fear, shock, PTSD due to conditioning can be removedIt is an aid to investigationIt is not a truth detection techniqueIt is not narco analysis


StandardsFrye StandardDaubart Standard


1. Rock Vs Arkansas 1986 US Supreme Court

2. Harding Vs State 1968 Maryland Supreme Court

Open Admissibility Rule

Contd.


3. State V. Mack 1980 Minnesota Supreme Court

People V. Shirley 1982 California Supreme Court

Per Se Exclusion Rule4. State V. Hurd 1981 New Jersey Court Totality of circumstance or Admissibility with safeguard Rule


1. Record prehypnotic version of witness2. Informed consent3. Well qualified, independent hypnotist4. Session to be videotaped5. Police not to be present6. Avoid leading questions


"Just when a scientific principle or discovery crosses the line between the experimental and demonstrable stages is difficult to define. Somewhere in this twilight zone the evidential forces of the principle must be recognised" -Frye Standard. {Frye V.United States, 293 F.1013 (D.C. Cir. 1923)}


Maharaja Sayaji Rao University, Gujrat offers PG Diploma in Clinical Hypnosis.Indian Society of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Ahmedabad.Number of Hypnotist available.


There is need to understand & use hypnosis in select cases.No Supreme Court judgment so far has been used in some cases sporadically.


1. Hypnosis for Beginners by William W Hawitt, published by Llewellyn Publications, USA.2. Hypnosis, Trance as a Coping Mechanism, published by Plenum Medical Book Company, New York.3.Investigative Forensic Hypnosis by Joe Niehaus, published by CRC Press.

Contd..


4. Hypnosis, Memory and Behaviour in Criminal Investigation by McKonekey, K.M. & Sheehan, PW, published by Guil Ford, New York. 5. Hand book of Investigative Hypnosis by Reiser M, published by LEHI, Los Angels.

Contd..


6. Hypnosis for Change by Josie Hadley & Carol Staudacher, published by Ballantine Books, New York.7. Hypnosis: Developments in Research and New Perspectives by Fromm, Erika and Shor, Ronald E., published by Aldine Publishing Company.

Contd..


8.Texas State Police Guidelines on Investigative Application of Hypnosis. 9. Hypnotic Hypermnesia by Dr. Relinger, Helmet, American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, Vol 26 (3),1984.

Contd..


10. Facilitating Memory with Hypnosis by G.F. Wago staff & others, International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Oct-2004. 11.Criminal Resource Manuals 287 to 295 US Deptt. of Justice.

Contd..


12. The use of Hypnosis by the police in investigation of crime. Home office circular no. 66/1988, of U.K.13.The Handbook of Forensic Psychology by Allen K. Hess & Irving B. Weiner published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. New York.

Contd..


14.Clinical Hypnosis and Memory: Guidelines for Clinicians and Forensic Hypnotists by American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, 1995.15.The Principles of Hypnosis by Dylan Margan.

Contd..


16. Police Use of Investigative Hypnosis -by Martin Reisea, American Journal of Forensic Psychology, 1984 Vol.II, No.3.17. http ://www.abbefaria.com18.A Man Ahead of His Times by Dr.Mikhail Buyanov, Mir Publishers, Moscow, 1989.

Contd..


19. Hypnosis for the Seriously Curious by Kenneth S. Bowers published by Brooks/Cole publishing company, California.20. Hypnosis in Medicine and Surgery by J. Esdaile 1957, Julian Press, Inc.


E mail [email protected] http://mukteshchander.tripod.com

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