I did learn two things from that interview: 1. How Sloan ended up in counseling with Dr. Loren Burt, a pro-porn advocate in Alma, of all places (he was referred by his previous counselor), and 2. that there was a psychiatrist or psychologist at Northville who was counseling institutionalized pedophiles into believing they were reincarnations of Ancient Greek or Roman pederasts–there’s a license in need of revoking!
1.) Yes to the category of wasted time, especially the approach. It was frustrating how much they stuck to the “how might the killer have done it strategy”. It is a hit or miss technique and something I wish investigators steered clear from, even though interrogation training promotes it. That was particularly frustrating when the interviewer was feeding the myths about a singular, meticulous killer. I wish they would have at least interjected counter-narratives, known to Sloan, that might have at least forced him to adapt. Obviously, not much point there when we already know Cooper was signaling to him that he was safe.
2.) We all know Sloan is a liar and manipulator. I was curious to see how he prioritized his lies. His main priority, one that he introduces before it is even brought up, was how he selected his victims. Numerous times he asserts that he targeted the children of acquaintances. He does this to deflect because he knows the interviewer is operating from a perspective that the children in OCCK were randomly selected. First, we know that was not his MO. His earlier crimes show randomness whether in PA or his MI neighborhood. He reveals as much when he tries to excuse some of his more calculated assaults: if I hadn’t stopped there, if I didn’t have fishing poles, if he didn’t want go fishing. I don’t think he intended to reveal that part of his thought process because the same could be applied to crimes we can infer his connection: if I hadn’t gone to meet Crosbie that night, if he had left the hall 10 minutes earlier. Things to that effect.
3.) He consistently tries to portray himself as a loner that is very protective of his family. Again, we can tell this is an act. Sloan is not capable of caring about people but it is a lie he wants to project, particularly when it comes to his interactions with other pedophiles. He initially uses the loner myth to assert he did not interact with anyone, ever. He makes a few missteps when he suggests there are things he won’t share with the interviewer that he might share with another pedophile, something that might be shared on a walk around the prison yard but otherwise kept quiet. Then, when he is trying to deflect on the car ownership we see that he has consistently been associating with other pedophiles. See Mary’s point on wasted time and the poor construction by the interviewer.
Not a separate point but Sloan does slip in trying to portray himself as a family man. He is a liar and the story may be completely false (or even worse) but he does reveal he is motivated to what (even by his standards) are considered violent assaults, when he considers there to be a threat to his family.
4.) I guess there’s not much to takeaway from someone as sickening as Sloan and the corrupt system that enabled him. I felt like he slipped up a few times and the interviewer failed to build on that. I think there is a pretty clear lineage of where he fits in so maybe in the end this interview doesn’t matter? I’m reminded of the Tombstone quote: You tell ’em I’m coming, and hell’s coming with me
Not specific to this posting, but thought you might want to read of this latest solving of an old case with retained DNA evidence. The systemic failures in resolving this for almost 20 years are appalling though, yet nothing compared to OCCK.
May I suggest that the interview with Sloan you previously posted falls into the same caregory of wasted time and money?
You may.
I did learn two things from that interview: 1. How Sloan ended up in counseling with Dr. Loren Burt, a pro-porn advocate in Alma, of all places (he was referred by his previous counselor), and 2. that there was a psychiatrist or psychologist at Northville who was counseling institutionalized pedophiles into believing they were reincarnations of Ancient Greek or Roman pederasts–there’s a license in need of revoking!
A few thoughts I had on the 2nd Sloan interview:
1.) Yes to the category of wasted time, especially the approach. It was frustrating how much they stuck to the “how might the killer have done it strategy”. It is a hit or miss technique and something I wish investigators steered clear from, even though interrogation training promotes it. That was particularly frustrating when the interviewer was feeding the myths about a singular, meticulous killer. I wish they would have at least interjected counter-narratives, known to Sloan, that might have at least forced him to adapt. Obviously, not much point there when we already know Cooper was signaling to him that he was safe.
2.) We all know Sloan is a liar and manipulator. I was curious to see how he prioritized his lies. His main priority, one that he introduces before it is even brought up, was how he selected his victims. Numerous times he asserts that he targeted the children of acquaintances. He does this to deflect because he knows the interviewer is operating from a perspective that the children in OCCK were randomly selected. First, we know that was not his MO. His earlier crimes show randomness whether in PA or his MI neighborhood. He reveals as much when he tries to excuse some of his more calculated assaults: if I hadn’t stopped there, if I didn’t have fishing poles, if he didn’t want go fishing. I don’t think he intended to reveal that part of his thought process because the same could be applied to crimes we can infer his connection: if I hadn’t gone to meet Crosbie that night, if he had left the hall 10 minutes earlier. Things to that effect.
3.) He consistently tries to portray himself as a loner that is very protective of his family. Again, we can tell this is an act. Sloan is not capable of caring about people but it is a lie he wants to project, particularly when it comes to his interactions with other pedophiles. He initially uses the loner myth to assert he did not interact with anyone, ever. He makes a few missteps when he suggests there are things he won’t share with the interviewer that he might share with another pedophile, something that might be shared on a walk around the prison yard but otherwise kept quiet. Then, when he is trying to deflect on the car ownership we see that he has consistently been associating with other pedophiles. See Mary’s point on wasted time and the poor construction by the interviewer.
Not a separate point but Sloan does slip in trying to portray himself as a family man. He is a liar and the story may be completely false (or even worse) but he does reveal he is motivated to what (even by his standards) are considered violent assaults, when he considers there to be a threat to his family.
4.) I guess there’s not much to takeaway from someone as sickening as Sloan and the corrupt system that enabled him. I felt like he slipped up a few times and the interviewer failed to build on that. I think there is a pretty clear lineage of where he fits in so maybe in the end this interview doesn’t matter? I’m reminded of the Tombstone quote: You tell ’em I’m coming, and hell’s coming with me
Not specific to this posting, but thought you might want to read of this latest solving of an old case with retained DNA evidence. The systemic failures in resolving this for almost 20 years are appalling though, yet nothing compared to OCCK.
Well, and here is the link I forgot to include in my last post. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/man-imprisoned-in-california-charged-in-1994-slayings-of-mother-toddler-in-renton/?utm_source=marketingcloud&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=TSA_021622024858+Man+in+prison+charged+for+1994+cold-case+shooting+deaths+of+mother%2c+3-year-old_2_15_2022&utm_term=Active%20subscriber
Thanks, Barb.