Hennepin County Attorney’s Office announces new policy aimed at preventing false confessions

New HCAO policy on taking statements from children

A new policy at the Hennepin County Attorney's Office aims to prevent false confessions. FOX 9's Mike Manzoni has more. 

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty on Wednesday announced a new policy aimed at preventing false confessions and protecting children’s constitutional rights.

Prosecutors will stop using statements from children 13 and under

What we know:

Under the new policy, prosecutors will no longer use as evidence in court statements from children 13 and under. In addition, they will only use statements from children who are between 14 and 17 if certain conditions are met. Those conditions include alerting the child’s parents, allowing them to speak with an attorney and ensuring that they understand their rights.

The policy will not apply in situations where an officer’s questions are to prevent the child or someone else from being injured.

Moriarty said her office has been working on the policy for months and pointed out a high-profile murder case in which she said it would have been useful.

Marvin Haynes was 16 when he was arrested and charged with a murder in north Minneapolis. Though he never confessed, he was convicted and spent nearly 20 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. (He was exonerated in 2023 after a judge ruled that his conviction hinged on unconstitutional eyewitness testimony.)

False confessions a concern with children

By the numbers:

False confessions are a nationwide problem, according to data released by the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office. 

Research shows 35% of exonerated people who were charged as children gave false confessions, the office said. 

That number nearly doubles, to 60%, when the children were charged under 14, according to the data.

What they're saying:

"What we’re trying to do here is prevent wrongful convictions and false confessions...." said Moriarty, who explained that parents overwhelmingly disapprove of police interrogating their children. "I’ve never talked to anyone who’s said, ‘Oh, I’d allow that.’ They say, ‘Absolutely not.’ So, the question really is: If that’s not okay for your child, why is it okay for anyone else’s child?"

The downside:

Moriarty said there could be at least one downside to the policy, though she said it would be rare. "I suppose there could be a scenario where a child confesses to some type of crime, and that’s the only evidence that we have, and so we may not be able to charge it," she said.

The other side:

Moriarty said her office worked with the Hennepin County Chiefs of Police Association when it formulated the policy. 

When reached for comment via email on Wednesday, the organization said it would not have a response until Thursday.