Your confession alone is not enough to convict you of a crime

If the police come and interrogate you about a crime in which they think you're involved and you confess to that crime don't panic. It's not over yet. You may think you've just convicted yourself. Not so fast. In this video I'll explain how your confession alone is not nearly enough to convict you of a crime.

I'm Andrew Williams. I'm board certified in criminal law and I've been practicing for over 30 years.  I share my years of experience with you to give you a better understanding of the law and maybe use it to your benefit.  I provide you with General legal information but the law varies from one jurisdiction to another. From one state to another.  Therefore if you do have a legal problem you should always make sure to consult an attorney in your area to advise you about the facts and circumstances of your particular case.

Why Confession does not equal conviction

So why isn't your confession enough to convict you of a crime? Well because in most jurisdictions the law requires other evidence to connect you to the crime. Just admitting to it is not going to be enough. So if you slip up and happen to incriminate yourself during a police interrogation you don't don't need to panic. No doubt your admission can be used and most likely will be used against you if you ever decide to go to trial but again your word alone is not enough for a conviction.

Courts Require Corroborating Evidence

Courts generally require corroborating evidence to support your confession. Corroborating evidence is other evidence connecting you to the crime to which you just confessed. This could be your fingerprints at the crime scene. DNA found at the crime scene or on the victim. Maybe a witness saw you at or near the crime scene at the time of the crime. An instrument of the crime was found in your home during a search like a gun with your fingerprints on it or a knife something like that.

False Confessions

One of the primary reasons why a confession alone cannot lead to a conviction is because of the well documented occurrence of false confessions. A lot of people confess the crimes they didn't commit. People falsely confess to crimes for various reasons including coercion by the police, psychological distress, lack of understanding of the law, low IQ or a desire to protect someone else. There are plenty of real life cases where innocent people have been convicted based on false confessions only to be exonerated Years Later by DNA evidence or faulty eyewitness testimony or something like that. That is why an admission by itself is not enough even when you voluntarily plead guilty to a crime in open court before a judge and you're under oath.

Prosecutor must provide supporting facts

The judge will not accept your plea of guilty until the prosecutor has provided the judge with additional supporting facts to support your plea. This is known as a factual basis for the crime. The prosecutor will read the factual basis to the judge in open court and then the judge will turn around and ask you is that true. Did you do what the prosecutor just said you did. If you don't agree with the factual basis or the factual basis is not sufficient for the judge. The judge won't take the plee of guilty and you won't be convicted and that's how it works.

That's why your confession alone is not enough. I hope this information was helpful.

Author: Andrew Williams

I am a criminal defense lawyer with over 30 years experience defending people accused of wrongdoing. I am board certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Only ten percent of attorneys in Texas are board certified in their respective field. I practice criminal law exclusively in both state and federal court including appeals of criminal cases.