Since the debut of NBC's TV show "Medium" psychics who help the police have been a subject of conversation and debate. Can psychics help the police solve crimes?
There seems to be no hard and fast answer to that question. Organizations as diverse as the LAPD and the University of Arizona have attempted scientific studies of the subject. The conclusions are…inconclusive.
One main stumbling block is that often the police or law enforcement department involved will not admit to using a psychic.
In fact, the real life psychic who is the inspiration of the TV show, Allison DuBois, claims to have begun her career when she was consulted by the Texas Rangers for help in finding the body of a missing child. The Texas Rangers deny having ever consulted a psychic for help with any crime.
Another is that often the information the psychic provides, although proven to be correct later, is not such that it will help. For instance, the psychic may describe the location of the body in such a way that it is not of assistance in finding it, although they are clearly describing it to the best of their ability.
For example, in a case in 1961, psychic Gerard Croiset described the following location as where the body of a missing child would be found; "a tall building with a billboard on top, near an elevated railroad and a river". The next day, after given materials he had requested; a photo of the child, map of New York, and item of the child's clothing, he refined his description; "The building has, I think, five floors. On the second floor I get a strong emotion". He also mentioned the color gray was important.
While this seems like a fairly detailed description - we are talking about New York City!
However, six hours later as a part of an unrelated search, the police did find the child's body in a second story room in a gray building near an elevated railroad and the Hudson River.
In this case, Mr. Croiset had also described the murderer. When the police located the tenant of the room he fit the physical description, including some details about his clothing and he was indeed eventually found guilty of the child's murder. However, Mr. Croiset's description was also incorrect in certain small details. He described the man as being from South Europe when in fact he was from England, the building was four stories tall rather than five, and there was no billboard.
Another problem is, that no matter how clear and exact the information provided by a psychic, it is not currently admissible in court, nor can it be used to get a search warrant for a location.
It is clear that often psychics either volunteer information about crimes, or are consulted (if discreetly) by some law enforcement agencies, and often by the families of crime victims. But the skepticism of the general public and the courts encourages a sort of "hush hush" about the use and value of their information.
Until that is eliminated, it will be impossible to do a serious and informative study of their actual effectiveness in helping to solve crimes.
Summer
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