Sunday, April 10, 2005

Shoe leather, not sixth sense, breaks cases open

Shoe leather, not sixth sense, breaks cases open
by Clint Van Zandt (MSNBC)
Each of us can believe what we choose, but in the criminal justice field, crimes are solved by investigation and information—not by rubbing sticks together, huddling over a Ouija Board, or talking to a spirit guide. A 17th-century dowsing sleuth was tested in Paris and failed every test given to him. A 1991 test of a London-based police psychic concerning her ability to use psychometry to solve crimes suggested that she had no such skill. And a standing $1 million reward for anyone who can prove paranormal power still remains unclaimed.

What happens many times is that professed psychics allow themselves the benefit of 20/20 hindsight. After the case is solved, they make their previously vague predictions somehow fit the crime and the criminal.

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