Unsolicited Explanations: How Liars Betray Themselves

It’s no secret that deception creates mental and physiological stress within us. That stress creates physiological responses that can be measured by lie detection technology such as the Polygraph, and the Voice Stress Analyzer.  The great thing about the stress from deception is that it also creates anomalies in speech!  Since the brain’s default setting is to tell the truth, it will attempt to protect itself from the stress of deception by altering one’s speech in several ways.  Those are the linguistic anomalies we look for and exploit to get to the truth. 

It is one thing to believe that someone is lying, it is quite another to articulate how that person is lying and what part of their story might be truthful.  Keep in mind, the best deception is cloaked in truthful information, which often makes it difficult to recognize and articulate. 

Once you understand how psychological stress is linguistically manifested, you will realize that deceptive people actually teach you where to focus your interview questions!  Their own words will also teach you where the investigation should be focused!

The Unsolicited Explanation – A Core Deceptive Indicator

There are several linguistic indicators we look for to determine if a person is skirting the truth or feeling stress regarding a particular element in their story.  One of the most effective, yet overlooked indicators is the unsolicited explanation.  This is when the subject provides a reason why something happened but was not asked to do so. 

When someone is asked to tell you what happened, it is easy for them to do when they are telling the truth.  However, when any form of deception is present, the stress from that deception will often appear in the form of heightened sensitivity which manifests as a wordy response.  In other words, they will offer explanations for the points of their story that are either manufactured or something they would like to cloak in deception. If their story was de facto true, no explanation would be necessary.  However, since the story is not entirely true, an explanation is necessary (in their mind) to make the story believable.  

If you understand the importance of these explanations and focus on them, they will make a big difference in your interviews, as well as your investigations.  Listening for unsolicited explanations will identify those with guilty knowledge. Many current and cold cases could be solved by simply recognizing the unsolicited explanations within the language of those being interviewed. 

Take for example the Lina Reyes-Geddes case.  Lina’s disappearance was a mystery for over 20 years.  Her husband, Edward Geddes, told investigators that the last time he saw Lina was when he dropped her off at the airport in Pittsburg.  He said that she took a flight to visit her family in Mexico.  However, Lina never arrived in Mexico and there was no trace of her anywhere in between.  A cursory interview was conducted with Edward after Lina’s family reported her missing.  The interview was five months after Lina allegedly flew to Mexico.  Edward’s interview contains classic examples of how Unsolicited Explanations revealed the stress and sensitivity within his brain. 

Below is a portion of Edward’s interview transcript in which he is describing the last morning he was with Lina.  You will see several areas in bold blue font, which are the unsolicited explanations.  The areas in bold red font are the sensitive topics that Edward is explaining and therefore most important.  Simply by following the sensitivity (the explanations) in Edward’s language, key pieces of this investigation are exposed.  It’s too bad Truth2Lies Training wasn't around back then.  Had the interviewing detective understood the significance of Edward’s unsolicited explanations; this case might have been solved 20 years ago!

Edward: Okay on, um, Wednesday morning April 8^th, we left ah, I would have to guess at 6:45 am, our place in Austintown, ah, we had Cheekie, the dog with us, okay, and ah she had packed cosmetic case, a suitcase, um, I think a hang-up bag, ah and, she had a, ah, ah, a sleeping bag. Okay, ah, which was ah, going to be a present for one of her little cousins.  You know he always liked to go out into the backyard, um, you know and play camp.  He had a little hut and things like that.

Detective: So, she had a sleeping bag? 

Edward: She had the sleeping bag.  I had rolled the sum bitch up tight. Ha-ha. That’s an odd combination,

Detective: Okay.

Edward: ah, to carry. It was, it was going to be a present for ah Paco.

Detective: What color was the sleeping bag?

Edward: Blue, the outside, I guess it was a light color on the inside. I think, yeah. Oh, man, now you are testing my memory.

Detective: That’s in case we, who knows, if we find something down there. You know find a sleeping bag.

Edward:  Since I talked to you, I’m going to ah, say one thing. We ought to enter it here. I might have told you this before because it didn’t come to mind until about a month or so ago. Um, she got up pretty early that morning, cause she had long hair, and she went shampoo and it took a while to dry her hair.

Detective: Okay

Edward: And so, I was lying in bed watching her you know. But so, the first thing she would do she would come out of the shower. She would have the towel wrapped around her thing. And she came out nude. She would put on a pair of underpants and bra, okay. Then she would you know start working with her hair. I can, I can tell you what underpants and bra she had on.

Detective: Okay

Edward: Ah, they were white cotton, and the bra, the reason that I remember is it was my favorite pants and bra. Ah, it was white cotton with pictures of apples and maybe bananas on it. okay, little pictures like this, like the size of a nickel.

Detective: Okay

Edward: And the bra had the same pattern.

Detective: Apples and what?

Edward: I think Apples and bananas.

Detective: Bananas

Edward: Unusual. Okay, they left, ahh, about 6:45, Austintown.  We went down to the Pittsburgh Airport.  Ah, I pulled up to the check in, the U.S. Air check in, she didn’t have a ticket, so the sky cap cannot check something just on your word, you have to have a ticket. So, I gave him $10.00 bucks, and said okay you now take care of all her baggage, make sure she gets to where she is going. okay, and, ah you know I didn’t come into the airport because I had Cheeckie in, in the car. And, ah we hadn’t really broken Cheeckie of keeping her in the car, okay.  Ah, we hadn’t taught her how to stay in the car and not go pee pee.

Ah, so you know we kissed, I was out of the car, we kissed, ah, sky cap picked up all the stuff and went into the Pittsburgh Airport. That’s the last time I saw her.

As you can see, the key areas of focus should be:

1. The sleeping bag: Edward could hardly remember that Lina had a sleeping bag, but once he mentioned it, he gave four variations of the reason why she had the sleeping bag. That makes the sleeping bag very important to the investigation, and it should’ve been given more attention during the interview. Excessive explaining is a key indicator that he has an acute need to explain something that the detective probably would not have thought to be that important.  Excessive explaining tells us that we better focus on that topic, which in this case is the sleeping bag. 

2. The bra and underpants Lina was wearing: Edward spent a lot of unnecessary time and cognitive energy talking about how he knew what bra and underpants Lina was wearing. In reality, all he had to say is, by the way, I remembered what bra and underpants Lina was wearing that morning. Instead, Edward talked about her long hair and that she got up early to shampoo it.  He then said that he was watching her and then described what she usually did after she took a shower.  Speaking of that, note that he did not describe what she actually did that morning, rather it was what she usually does.  Edward finally told the investigator what bra and underpants Lina was wearing, but then interrupted himself to give a reason why he remembered, which was that they were his favorite. Edwards excessive explanation taught us that the bra and underpants that Lina was wearing are going to be a key part of this case.

There is one more thing to note while we are analyzing this portion of Edward’s interview.  Note how he described what Lina did after she came out of the shower.  He stated that Lina would have a towel wrapped around her thing.  The word “thing” is a stark contrast from the word “head.”  This is an indication that he has depersonalized Lina. This will end up being a key part of this investigation, which I'll reveal to you later.

3. Edward not going into the airport: Edward tripled down on his explanations as to why he didn't go into the airport.
4.  “…because I had Cheekies in, in the car.”
5.  “And ah, we hadn’t really broken Cheekies of keeping her in the car.”
6. “Okay, ah, we hadn’t taught her how to stay in the car and not go pee pee.”

Edwards sensitivity displayed by his excessive explanations, taught us that we should ask why he was so sensitive about not going into the airport.  The reason is that he never took Lina to the airport. One of the reasons we know this from the statement alone, is that the first part of his description does not make sense. Edwards stated that Lina did not have a ticket, and the sky cap could not check her in without a ticket. Yet, he gave the sky cap $10 and told him to take Lina and her luggage and make sure she got to where she was going. The interviewer should have definitely asked follow up questions regarding this part of his story. One of the reasons that Edward needed to explain why he didn't go into the airport was because there are cameras in the airport. He knew that he would not be seen on the cameras because he was never there. 

4. His portrayal that he was such a good husband that he kissed her goodbye: Most everyone kisses their loved one goodbye when they drop them off at an airport. It is one of those things that does not need to be explained.  We frequently witness goodbye kisses whenever we go to the airport.  The goodbye kiss is one of those things that is so mundane, that most people do not feel the need to mention it. Similarly, most people will not mention that they told their loved one “goodbye” or “good night” or “I love you.” It is just something that most everyone does.  The fact that Edward took the time to tell the detective, “We kissed,” is an indication that he has a need to portray the relationship as a good one. This observation is backed up by the fact that Edward had to explain that he was out of the car, which is how they were able to kiss. 

The unnecessary explanation of him being out of the car and able to kiss Lina goodbye indicates that the kiss is very sensitive to Edward. If we had no other unnecessary explanations prior to this, we could determine that the kiss is sensitive because it was his last one with Lina. However, the context in this case is different. His unnecessary portrayal of him being a good husband indicates that he is likely not a very good husband or has done something wrong. Also, this part of his story is a continuation of his persuasion that he was at the airport.

Edward didn’t realize it, but all his explanations (in blue) actually revealed his acute sensitivity to the four areas above. Unfortunately, those key areas were not recognized by the interviewer and therefore not exploited.  Had he recognized the sensitivity and known how to exploit it, this case might have been solved 20 years ago.  To exploit the sensitivity, the investigator should’ve asked follow-up questions surrounding those areas, such as the ones below. 

• Edward, you stated that Lina had a sleeping bag and that you tied the sum bitch up tight. Describe that to me... or, Tell me more about that… or, What did that look like?

• Edward, thank you for all your help and the information you’ve given us so far. You said that you dropped Lina off at the airport.  Tell me about your last conversation with Lina…what did you talk about on the way to the airport… at the airport… what is your last memory of her... describe that in more detail.  

By focusing on the sensitivity in Edward’s own words, his stress level will automatically be elevated.  His responses will reveal additional points of sensitivity that should then be exploited in a similar manner. 

The rest of the story:

Lina never made it to the airport.  Her body was actually dumped near Lake Powell in Utah, a few weeks after she went missing.  However, her identity was unknown for close to 20 years. She had been shot in the back of her head. Her fingers were cut off and she was wrapped up in… you guessed it; the blue sleeping bag that was so sensitive to Edward. She was also wearing the same bra and underpants he had described. In fact, that is all she was wearing.  Lina’s body was also frozen solid. 

Remember how Edward depersonalized Lina by saying that she had a towel wrapped around “her thing” instead of her head?  When Lina was found, her entire head was wrapped in duct tape.  It was as if her killer did not want her face to be seen, or perhaps he did not want to look at her face. The sensitivity surrounding the airport story and Edward not going inside was due to the fact that he manufactured that story. He was never at the airport on the day he said he dropped Lina off. 

Edward told investigators that a couple weeks after Lina disappeared, he drove a van to the El Paso area in an attempt to find Lina.  He told them that he mostly used cash on that trip, and that he took “another sleeping bag” with him and slept in the van.  Of course, that means his exact whereabouts could not be tracked by credit card usage.

The sleeping bag Lina was found in was tied up with ropes and several knots.  Recent advancements in DNA technology helped identify Edward’s DNA on those ropes.  He really did tie it up tight - that part was actually true!  Sadly, Edward shot himself about three years after Lina was killed.  He will never get to serve his time in prison. Obviously, he was not a good husband like he made himself out to be!  

 Recognizing and focusing on the areas of elevated sensitivity will put your investigators way ahead of the game!

 The Truth2Lies Training class, ‘Getting to the Truth,’ is three days of effective and compelling training.  The skills we teach are effective, cutting edge and a paradigm shift from the ordinary methods that most are still using.  Unsolicited Explanations are just one of the many elements our students learn in class.  

Here are some upcoming Truth2Lies training classes.  If you don’t see one in your area, contact us today to get one scheduled. 

We also have the Getting to the Truth class in an online version, most of which was filmed at a live law enforcement class!  

If you would like more on the topic of unsolicited explanations, check out this YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R15V_o_mxxg