Frederick Porter Wensley’s career at Scotland Yard offers enduring lessons for modern Criminal Investigation. Long before formal models or buzzwords, Wensley understood that information is the lifeblood of every case. His success came from patience, careful listening, and respect for evidence, not tricks or rigid systems. That same philosophy underpins today’s science-based approach: gather reliable information, avoid contamination, and seek understanding before conclusions.

Investigators rely on memory as evidence, yet memory is vulnerable to distortion through post-event information and poorly framed questions. Research on the misinformation effect shows how leading questions, social influence, and timing can alter recall. Science-Based Interviewing (SBI) protects memory integrity by prioritizing early interviews, witness separation, free narratives, and the strategic use of evidence to gather accurate, reliable statement evidence.