Being able to recognize who is telling the truth is an invaluable tool for attorneys, and members of the Jacksonville Women Lawyers Association received tips on reading body language to help them hone the ability.
Body language expert Susan Constantine was the guest speaker at the JWLA monthly luncheon Wednesday at The River Club.
She has been called on by CNN, ABC, CBS, truTV, Fox News and The Associated Press for her skills in “reading people” and was enlisted recently to interpret the body language of Casey Anthony during her trial. Anthony was found not guilty of murdering her daughter, Caylee.
“We wonder why people question if Casey Anthony really didn’t appear to be remorseful,” said Constantine.
“If she says that she is sad or if she is watching something that would trigger sadness or grief and I don’t see that on her face recalling those events, it’s not truly felt. If it’s not truly felt, then the emotions aren’t truly there,” she said.
In an exercise to show how the body can communicate nonverbally, Constantine swore in the group of about 70 attendees.
She told the group members to keep their hands up after the oath was finished and told them to look at their neighbor so they could study the hand and wrist that was used to take the oath.
“I’m going to tell you who is going to tell you the truth and who is going to lie to you,” said Constantine.
Those with the fingers spread apart while taking the oath were identified as people who would tell you the truth.
“But they will give you so much information that you really don’t want to know,” said Constantine.
Those with fingers close together were also truthful.
“But you will have to beg, borrow and steal to get the information out of these guys,” said Constantine.
The wrist was also an indicator of who will tell the truth. People who took the oath with their hand bent forward were truthful, but Constantine warned of those with their hand bent back.
“You’ll tell a little story to get yourself out of hot water if you need to,” said Constantine, with a picture of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich being sworn in on a screen behind her.
Blagojevich’s hand was bent backward.
“You will never look at someone taking the oath the same way ever again,” said Constantine.
She explained that there is no one telltale sign to determine if someone is lying.
“You’ve got to tie it together with their voice, their words and their body language,” said Constantine. “It’s all got to tie together. That’s what a good investigator does.”
Though there are many factors considered when trying to read someone, Constantine emphasizes what can be learned from facial expressions.
“It’s, by far, the most and only real reliable source. About 98 percent factual, so when you can read people’s facial expressions and the muscles that fire, you can read the emotions behind them,” said Constantine.
The next meeting of JWLA is Nov. 10. The guest speaker will be former U.S. Ambassador Nancy Soderberg.
JWLA President Stephanie Harriett also announced Florida Supreme Court Justice Peggy Quince will be the guest speaker at the Jan. 19 meeting. JWLA is also planning a bachelor/bachelorette auction to benefit Jacksonville Area Legal Aid.
356-2466