The Memory Room: Texas law enforcement uses hypnosis to investigate crimes. Does it uncover the truth?

A woman was beaten in her bed by an intruder. Dallas police forgot to collect evidence. To salvage their case, they hypnotized the victim.    (Illustration by Michael Hogue) THE MEMORY ROOM [Texas law enforcement uses hypnosis to investigate crimes. Does it uncover the truth?]( From investigative reporters Dave Boucher and Lauren McGaughy: Sometime before dawn on July 23, 1988, Helen Barbre awoke to a strange man in her bedroom. He bludgeoned her with what she guessed was a flashlight before she fought him off and he left. She provided scant details about her attacker’s physical appearance to police: he was a black man with a similar build to a security guard who had visited her Dallas apartment earlier that morning. It was a hectic Saturday and police officers were swamped with other calls. They never requested crime scene techs. More than 1,000 pages of police and legal records obtained by The Dallas Morning News detail how the initial police missteps in Barbre’s case led to a stalled investigation and, ultimately, to a last-ditch effort to find the truth through hypnosis. A News analysis of never-before-released [records shows how other law enforcement officers throughout Texas also used information given by witnesses or victims during hypnosis]( sessions to close cases. No one oversees or regulates the practice, deemed potentially dangerous by many in the scientific community. In fact, a vast body of research shows hypnosis may implant imaginary ideas or distort recollections. But advocates, including the Texas Rangers, defend the method, ignoring science to argue they need every tool they can find to catch criminals. At least 21 states ban evidence in court that was gleaned solely through hypnosis. Yet a News analysis found Texas law enforcement has used the dubious method nearly 1,800 times over 40 years, sending dozens of people to prison — and some to their deaths.  [Read the story](  ["I’m like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me. That’s nothing but voodoo stuff."]( -Danny Ray King, in a 2019 interview   MORE FROM INVESTIGATIONS  Caregivers [allege unsafe testing for coronavirus]( at urgent care centers north of Dallas. How do you [find a good nursing home]( Curious Texas investigates. A family called for help, police responded with violence. Now they’re [suing for reforms](.   Need help? Email customercare@dallasnews.com or call us at 214-745-8383. [Missing your email to set up your password?]( [Add The Dallas Morning News to your contacts](. STAY CONNECTED WITH US [Unsubscribe]( | [Free newsletters]( | [Dallasnews.com]( | [Subscriber login]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact us]( Copyright 2020 - [The Dallas Morning News, 1954 Commerce Street, Dallas, TX 75201, United States](