Minneapolis psychic Michael Mapes - Police Hired?

[Sherlock]

Michael Mapes, a self-described psychic and psychic detective player has recently criticized skeptics as a group for failing to admit to the involvement of psychics with law enforcement agencies.

But he has switched his language into a clever path of obfuscation. Critics of psychic involvement haven't been questioning the overlap between psychics and police --- gray areas of involvement that have always been difficult to determine what's real and what's not from unsolicited informal discussions to dropping off post cards in the mail to local police.

The real factor that has come to light in the past few years is that major psychic detectives have for decades been claiming to be directly hired by public law enforcement agencies. And now we know they lied through their teeth.

As an example, psychic detective actress Noreen Renier claims about 70% of her cases are those where she is directly hired by a police agency. Given her 650+ crime and missing person cases that would make 450 or so those where she is directly hired by police. Yet recent federal court subpoena's showed absolutely no payments by any police agencies to her over years --- and never from a U.S. State Police agency as she has repeatedly claimed.

In fact Michael Mapes is unable to list even as few as 25 public law enforcement agencies across the United States that have within the past 5 years directly hired any paranormal consultant for work on a crime or missing person case. He can't even come up with 25 of his own much 25 across the entire country hired by any assortment of psychic detectives.

It's this factor --- the lie that psychic detectives are hired directly for work directly for public law enforcement agencies that is the shocker now revealed. Newer public laws beginning in 1995 and vastly covered by 97% of all U.S. agencies by 2002 must disclose publicly hired consultants --- even if no payments are made.

And new county, state, and federal judicial laws require consultants even working at no charge with public law enforcement agencies to be listed and disclosed.

Thus the sham pushed by psychic detectives of vast direct involvement with law enforcement agencies since 2000 has been vaporized. Their tall tales often go back to the 1980’s and early 1990’s when requirements and tracking software didn’t yet exist.

Now newer software tracking programs heavily used across law enforcement networks track by name and occupation consultants (both those hired and those making their services available at no charge), and also prove no psychic detectives are working "under cover" or "silently due to political or media sanctions" --- just that they aren't working, involved, hired, or sanctioned at all.

Sure a psychic may stop by a public police agency and make some claim while standing in the lobby between a glass window and a police officer. Or send out postcards with wild visions scribbled to a hundred agencies. But law enforcement agencies and court / detective / judicial personnel want nothing to do with consultants who now run the risk of being citied for interference during court proceedings, false testimony, or involved in labor, financial tracking payments, etc.

TV psychic Noreen Renier herself was cited by a federal judge in March 2011 as not being a credible court witness and in a judgment order against her was cited for misleading the court!

Hundreds of police AGENCIES directly involved with paranormal personnel and psychics --- let's get real. It's a lie. It's not hundreds, or even 25. And it might by now be less than 5 across the entire U.S. --- a then likely small townships and county offices with limited forensic training. But even those 5 may now be gone.

Where’s the list? Some single traffic cop way out of his forensic detective league talking to a psychic --- maybe. Or some officer or agency from more than a decade ago --- a handful were around. But new laws and security requirements have eliminated detectives of that sort. And that’s why psychic Michael Mapes needs to play word games. He simply has no list and no excuse as to why he can’t produce a list of police agencies. After all in virtually all communities such lists and tracking procedures are part of the public legal system.

 

[Foolmewunz]

John,
Any references to a study or to the names of the software products in question?

Frankly, this would make a great mainsteam journalism article - are you still writing for the press? I'd guess one of the wire services would pick it up if you could back this with some facts/studies.

I, for one, would love to see it.

I looked up Mapes - he's a small fry making big claims. What he seems best at is self-promotion and fleecing the willing. I wouldn't put much store in anything he says. Reiner and others who grab the spotlight from time to time and try to claim official involvement, they should be tromped all over.

 

[Sherlock]

There are a variety of software programs used at present --- specific for various branches of law enforcement and judicial processing. I'll try and get more specifics of the latest versions available. I'm actively on Renier --- I've won four federal court judgments against her since 2006 including two in 2011. She is presently appealing ---for a second round --- before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit now. A likely decision in my favor is due likely by late April.

 

[Foolmewunz]

Search Term(s): psychic helps police


About 18,300,000 results (0.15 seconds)

I was thinking more of a more generic story (I know you're on Renier like white on rice). The above is a web search result. The first page has Zammit and Tru TV and the Daily News and various other links. Almost any story that starts out "do psychics really help police" turns into a paeon to woo.

If the stats actually show that the underlying claim itself is B.S., then I think it's a great article to go with. Never mind asking some former cop selling a book... How Many Actual Cases Have Psychics Been Consulted On? Compare that to the first forty-seven psychic websites like Reiner and Mapes, claiming that they're called in by the police all the time.... using actual statistics.

.... stuff like that.....

 

[Sherlock]

Police absolutely don't use psychics as of 2002

THAT is underway --- and has been for about a year. There simply are no public law enforcement agencies in the U.S. who sanction (unofficially or otherwise) the use of psychics and committed funds to hire them as consultants since approximately 2002. My margin or error now is literally down to about plus or minus 7 agencies and all below the state level across all 50 states.

If even 7 are out there they are likely at the township or small county level within an agency without even a single dedicated and accredited / certified forensic detective.

Ending the 'police use psychics' charade may require filing lawsuits against a few psychics across the country under state codes that forbid conducting business while promoting false interactions with public agencies. I've picked out a few states where the legislation is tighter and the several psychics are knee deep in exaggerations.

It's a charade that continues to go on because few ask who and then take the time to verify the falsehood. Law enforcement agencies are no longer holding back when confronted about using psychics. Their response is now an unqualified 'That's an absolute NO' in quick fashion. Not even a blink.

I encourage anyone who sees someone offering themselves as associated with police to ask which agency in particular and then call that agency. I've had several psychics stop their practice after getting heat from several agencies --- apparently warning letters of legal actions if they didn't stop.

That helps me --- public legal action is better than from my pocket.

 

[Foolmewunz]

You, of course, travel in different circles from many of us, John. I don't come across that many psychics making such a claim (that I'd be in a position to query them on, at least).

I was just sort of thinking out loud..... I can see great value in having a study available to cite, if just to offset some of the woo comments, e.g. on the TRU TV site I noted above. They mention a book on psychic detectives, cite two authorities briefly, then after introducing the skeptic, proceed to give eight paragraphs to the woo-leaning authority. And, of course, 99.75% of the comments are from waaaay down the rabbit hole.

A meta-study from the Southwestern Law Enforcement Journal or Forensics Illustrated (both of which I hope I just made up) would be a handy tool for the amateur debunker. The deep woos won't listen, but the fence-sitters will, quite often. I was going to sign up just to play Bop-A-Woo, but it usually just amounts to he said/she said on such sites. A nice peer reviewed (or even just a serious one) study or article would be lovely to throw at them as a link.

 

[rjh01]

You, of course, travel in different circles from many of us, John. I don't come across that many psychics making such a claim (that I'd be in a position to query them on, at least).

I was just sort of thinking out loud..... I can see great value in having a study available to cite, if just to offset some of the woo comments, e.g. on the TRU TV site I noted above. They mention a book on psychic detectives, cite two authorities briefly, then after introducing the skeptic, proceed to give eight paragraphs to the woo-leaning authority. And, of course, 99.75% of the comments are from waaaay down the rabbit hole.

A meta-study from the Southwestern Law Enforcement Journal or Forensics Illustrated (both of which I hope I just made up) would be a handy tool for the amateur debunker. The deep woos won't listen, but the fence-sitters will, quite often. I was going to sign up just to play Bop-A-Woo, but it usually just amounts to he said/she said on such sites. A nice peer reviewed (or even just a serious one) study or article would be lovely to throw at them as a link.

Good luck in getting this. I have seen a few web sites say that psychic detectives are worthless (in various ways) but nothing serious, beyond one thread on this forum.

 

[rjh01]

Further to my previous post you can have a look at these threads. Though I doubt if you will find any double blind peer reviewed papers published in a reputable journal
Police agencies hiring psychics: Delusional and untrue (Just about any thread started by Sherlock will give you similar information)
Psychic tips police to mass grave in Houston (A case study)
Psychics and Missing People. Should be compulsory reading before using a psychic in a missing person case)
Sylvia Browne is correct ZERO out of 112 missing person/murder cases

 

[Foolmewunz]

RJH,
I get that. John has indicated that there is such data available. John, if I'm not mistaken, is a legit journalist and having devoted much of his life to this information likely has sources not available to many of us.
My point is that if that such data is now available, I'd like to see it compiled in a report of some kind or see a good journalist write it up in such fashion as to be able to be used when discussing the issue. A "definitive" source, as it were.
John seemse to indicate that such a study is under way. I'd be real anxious to see the results of same. (I trust John's contention, by the way. He's pretty careful in what he writes because anything "can and will be used against" him by Norren's attorneys, I'm sure.