After watching the Dassey tapes, [Professor Richard] Ofshe believes Dassey was giving a forced
confession. “I see something that almost makes one ashamed to be an American,” Ofshe said. “It’s that bad. I’ve studied the transcripts… they threatened him. They told him there are people who want to charge him and we are your shield from those people. … ‘We are going to help you.’ They tell him repeatedly as long as Steven told you to do this, you didn’t do anything wrong… And then through that they get him to say anything that they want him to say.” (ASHLEY LOUSZKO, IGNACIO TORRES, LAUREN EFFRON and BEN NEWMAN in an ABC News article from 8 March 2016).
When Mr. Dassey's case was before the Supreme Court, Professor Saul Kassin wrote, "The 7th Circuit cited three arguments in support of Dassey’s confession. First, it noted that Dassey was not subject to physical force or mental exhaustion. He wasn’t handcuffed, yelled at or beaten into submission. This is true. But setting the bar this low represents an incomprehensible step backward. Even the Miranda court over 52 years ago understood that a subtle psychological approach can be inherently coercive...Over the years, the U.S. Supreme Court has sought to protect children, recognizing that they require special care. The treatment of Brendan Dassey — using interrogation tactics built for adults and troubling in their own right — controverts this position and should be re-examined."