Can psychics really see the past/future?

[Waltz1982]

I’m sure everyone has seen the signs for “$5 Psychic Readings” in their town or while traveling elsewhere. What I wanted to discuss here were your thoughts on using psychics for more than just personal entertainment, more specifically in police and detective work.

There’s been documented cases in the past where police haven’t been able to solve a crime, at which point they turn to a psychic for help.
What I find the most interesting is when the psychics they hire actually solve the case.

What are your thoughts on this? What about using psychics to help solve some of the current investigations (such as the Peterson or Hacking
trials?)

I’m not an expert myself on the topic, but I’ve been learning a bit more from a new show on Court TV called Psychic Detectives. It’s on Wednesday’s at 9:30pm in case you want to watch it too.

[kyrien]

I think it depends on what you want to accomplish in an investigation. Do you want to solve a case to incriminate someone? Or are you trying to find a missing person/hostage/save someone? I think it'll be difficult to implicate someone based on what "an alledged psychic" says, and it'll be really hard to make a case based on something that can be easily refuted as nonesense talk. However, I think a psychic can help the police build up a case based on evidence that the general populace will believe (such as finding the murder weapon or to fill in a missing piece of story by locating a key witness, etc). With missing persons cases, I think it doesn't hurt to contact a psychic, but you'll also need to consider whether others also on the case would be willling to follow the psychic's advice.

A long time ago I saw a show about a girl who went missing in a wooded area. She was, maybe 4, her grandparents were taking her out for a walk and she started throwing a fit because she wanted to stay somewhere. Her grandparents walked ahead anyway, making as if they were gonna leave her there, hoping that she'll follow, but when they turned around, she was no where to be seen. They thought she would be hiding somewhere, but after a while, they realized she really was missing and panicked. They were searching for 4 days, an at one point had asked a psychic to help them. The psychic kept saying that she sensed water, something like a river, but according to the park rangers, that based on the little girl's size, age, and assumed mental state, she could not have made it to the river because it was just too far so they kept combing through the other parts of the park they've marked as possible places. Two men who had seen the news about the search for her (and who had grandchildren themselves) set out and went to the river early on. They reasoned that lost/injured animals usually make their way towards running water of some sort, and figured they'd check there first. As it turns out, the little girl was there, and they brought her to her family.

The second part of the story isn't really related to this thread, but I'll tell it anyway. The little girl said she had encountered another girl in the forest. That other girl had helped her survive those 4 days, keeping her company and teaching her to cover herself with leaves at night to keep warm, and I think also showing her what she can/can't eat. There was, of course, no "other girl" with her when the men found her by the river, but years back, there was a young girl who had gone missing and presumably died in the same park, and that the person the little girl said she met in the forest, if not a very knowledgable imaginary friend, sounded like she was the ghost of the girl who had died a long time ago. I don't know whether that is necessarily believeable, but if it IS real, then I think it's a sweet story. Instead of being bitter that she was never found, the girl helped someone who ended up in the same position she had been, and helped her survive to go back home. Maybe it's like unfinished business, heh.

Anyway... I personally think it's fine to ask psychics for help. Keep your wits about you, but maintain an open mind for alternatives.

[Eric]

Being the usual killjoy and Mr. Spock, "There is no logical or factual basis for psychic activities...."

[M Yui]

I think that the major factor is... whether psychics are really credible enough to be hired. I mean, if you waste time and money hiring and following a psychic whose "visions" don't turn out to be true, then you might delay the investigation process by following such leads. Like, in the time that you spend following a false psychic lead, something might happen (missing person can't survive in the woods any longer, murderer escapes to another area, etc.). so I think it's hard to trust information like that, with so much to lose and so little time

[Star of Sorrow]

it really depends. I guess there really are people out there who's able to do things normal people can't. But you have to be careful at same time because of what yui said...so much to lose, and whatnot.

[Phedre]

it totally depends on the psychic...i know a girl who is a medium...and i mean the real deal. it's freaky and not the greatest gift but she deals with it.
personally i think you have to know the person to know whether or not they are "real"...i would trust my friend with an investigation or whatever...she's been correct in the past when it comes to tarot readin and stuff