Funny enough, I was watching Discovery ID yesterday and they did a story that I had previously seen on another show. It was about a teenage boy and his two friends. The boy’s younger sister was murdered in the family home. For some reason the police honed in on the boy. After much interrogation, sleep deprivation, and abuse the boy and one of the friends confessed they did it just so the interrogation would stop. Turns out it was a transient/schizo that had been in the area and knocking on doors that day looking for a girl he liked to share drugs with. The boy was only 14. The videos of him being interrogated were so sad. He kept insisting he didn’t do it, but finally gave in.
I’ve heard of that happening a number of times. The best advice is: don’t talk to the authorities without a lawyer. Period. Unfortunately, teens and children aren’t usually capable of managing that kind of advice. They’re just too vulnerable.