She shifted her gaze to Bill. “Sheriff, you’re aware of the methods that investigators used to obtain those confessions. They lied to the suspects. Threatened them with harsher punishments. Coached them to provide the desired answers. Had intimate chats with each of them off the record.”
She tilted her head inquiringly. “Is it safe to say your office no longer uses those techniques?”
“You bet it is,” he replied. “We don’t use investigative approaches that have been discredited.”
She turned back to Alan and softened her voice. “You’re raising a family in this community. I know you’ll make certain nothing like this can happen again.”
Alan’s chin jutted out. “As the sheriff said, we’ve taken steps to assure that.”
“Without further delay, you can free four innocent people and end this mis
