It has been interesting to watch public opinion on Annette Sykes sway. Early on more people believed Sykes than did not, but in the last day or so, the pendulum swayed to disbelief (see original post and poll here). What makes deception so difficult is there is no sure clue to deceit.
In the beginning of the interview, Sykes is visibly annoyed that reporters for a variety of reasons. Some of you believe that she is deflecting instead of answering the question, but I disagree. Sykes was annoyed that people had to ask her how she was feeling. To her, it is obvious that a parent or grandparent would be miserable when their child is missing, so asking the question seems ridiculous to her. It annoys her, which is logical. So instead of answering the question, she asks the reporter to think how he would feel. It’s logical, normal and nothing unusual.
Read moreI do not see any micro expressions of happiness as some of you thought you saw at time marker 1:25.
I also don’t think you can judge someone from a lack of tears. Its much more important to focus on the emotions expressed. Are they genuine? Are they sincere? Are they consistent with the situation? Do they make sense for the situation the person is in? With Sykes, the answer for me was yes for all of those questions. She does break down at one point and it is absolutely genuine. It’s not inconsistent at all.
Some of you felt when Sykes closed her eyes and blinked at key times that this was an indication of deception. For me, these are never clues to deception because honest people do them just as frequently as deceptive people do. The most important thing any detective can do is look for inconsistencies. Looking and focusing on behavioral ticks will almost always give you a false reading.
While Sykes is annoyed and perhaps angry at the questions asked of her, there is a calm about her that is undeniable, that I would not expect to see if she was being deceptive. She answers questions effortlessly and without thought. Her words flow. She does not show any indications that she is thinking on her feet.
When Sykes is asked if Misty was gone that night and she replies, “That’s a crock!” Sykes has a lot of emotions. She is mad and isn’t shy about showing it. Often times liars will attempt to hide their emotions to cover their lies. Sykes is very comfortable letting out her genuine anger here, and if she feels that Misty is being unfairly picked on she should feel anger. This, again, is normal.
With Sykes statement, all we can conclude is that she likely did see Misty and Haleigh at 7:00 PM, but that is all we can gather from it.
To me, Sykes is believable and honest here. I do not see one hot spot or indication that Sykes is being deceptive.
