S.2 Ep.21- Forcing the Narrative During Interviews Can Burn Credibility.

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, spooky season banter quickly gives way to a masterclass on interviewing for fire investigation: open-ended vs. leading questions, letting witnesses talk without interruption, taking notes without breaking rapport, and using scene walk-throughs to correct memory gaps and build timelines. We unpack subrogation in plain English, why early investigator deployment is value-add, and how to avoid bias from client synopses. Real cases include a mid-slope wildland start clarified by witness video, an LA industrial strip with two separate fires hours apart, and a garage Li-ion incident with practical safety takeaways. Tools mentioned include PLAUD for transcription and LLMs for formatting—not for conclusions. We close with “Use It in a Sentence” on ambient, a roundup of WTF Trainings, and a two-fer homework: interview vs. interrogation—what’s the difference?Resources mentioned (non-sponsored)PLAUD (Plaud Note) – audio capture/transcription used to create interview transcripts.LLMs (e.g., Gemini/ChatGPT/Claude) – used only to format summaries from transcripts.WTF Trainings (as mentioned on the show)Alabama ATC 2025 — Oct 27–29, Orange Beach, ALFlorida IAAI Chapter (Lake Buena Vista) — Nov 3–6 Idaho Chapter Annual Conference — Nov 4–6, Twin Falls, IDHispano Americano ATC 2025 — Nov 11–14, Santa Martha, ColombiaOhio IAAI Investigation Seminar 2025 — Nov 12–13, OHThank you for listening! If you enjoyed the episode, give us 5 stars, hit the follow button, and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and anywhere you are listening in from. Follow us on social media!Instagram: @infocusfire_podcastLinkedIn: INFOCUS podcastFacebook: INFOCUS podcastTikTok: @infocus_podcast