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The Confessions

How could four men confess to a brutal crime that they didn't commit? Inside the incredible saga of the Norfolk Four -- a case that cracks open the justice system to reveal almost everything that goes wrong when innocent people get convicted.

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Introduction »
InterviewsAn ex-NYPD detective... an expert on false confessions... and the attornys for Danial Williams and Joe Dick... Updates / Contact InformationThe status of the men's appeals; updates on Detective Ford and the prosecutorWhat Most People Don’t KnowPerfectly legal interrogation techniques ... facts not in the film ...some background from producer Ofra BikelFalse Confessions & InterrogationsMajor studies and readings, news coverage and resources
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the latest

April 3, 2013, 3:58 pm
One of the Norfolk Four Makes a Final Appeal to the Supreme Court

Eric Wilson served more than seven years for a rape it seems almost certain that he didn’t commit.

March 19, 2012, 4:10 pm
New Appeal in False Confession Case Focuses on Sex Offender Status

As a sex offender, Eric Wilson is required to register with the state police every 90 days. There are certain … Continue reading →

All Updates »

Eight men charged. Five confessions. But only one DNA match. Why would four innocent men confess to a brutal crime they didn't commit?

In The Confessions, FRONTLINE producer Ofra Bikel (Innocence Lost, An Ordinary Crime) investigates the conviction of four men -- current and former sailors in the U.S. Navy -- for the rape and murder of a Norfolk, Va., woman in 1997. In the first television interviews with the "Norfolk Four" since their release, Bikel learns of some of the high-pressure police interrogation techniques -- the threat of the death penalty, sleep deprivation, intimidation -- that led each of the men to confess, despite the lack of any evidence linking them to the crime. (read more »)

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posted november 9, 2010

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