Forensic Linguistic Analysis of the Construction of Investigation Report of Suspect in Criminal Cases of Insulting the Tolaki Ethnic Group in Southeast Sulawesi
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59011/austronesian.4.3.2025.185-202Keywords:
Discourse construction, Investigation report (BAP), Forensic Linguistics, Language investigation, Language in legal contextAbstract
This study examines the construction of the investigation report (BAP) by using forensic linguistics study. This study employs a qualitative approach to analyze the BAP. The primary data used consist of two copies obtained from the Regional Police Department of Southeast Sulawesi. The results show that total of 26 productive questions and 4 non-productive questions were found. The most dominant type of question used in the interrogation of the criminal case of insulting the Tolaki ethnic group is the productive closed question type, with 15 occurrences, representing approximately 46.6 percent. In addition, there were six types of presuppositions were identified as correlating with all speech events. These include existential presupposition, factual presupposition, lexical presupposition, structural presupposition, non-factual presupposition, and temporal clause presupposition. The most dominant type of presupposition found was structural presupposition, with a total of 13 occurrences. These research findings affirm that forensic linguistics plays a strategic role in evaluating the quality of investigative examinations and the evidentiary strength of the BAP. The analysis of question types and presuppositions demonstrates that language is not merely a means of communication, but a legal instrument that can influence the validity of a suspect’s statements. Accordingly, the application of forensic linguistic principles enables an objective assessment of whether a BAP is produced through examination procedures that are fair, non-misleading, and consistent with legal standards of proof.
References
Adhikara, R. (2022). Investigative Interview of Indonesian Police Investigator. Legal Brief, 11(3), 1754–1762. https://doi.org/10.35335/legal
Alduais, A., Al-Khulaidi, M. A., Allegretta, S., & Abdulkhalek, M. M. (2023). Forensic linguistics: A scientometric review. Cogent Arts and Humanities, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311983.2023.2214387
Bachari, A. D., Sudana, D., & Gunawan, W. (2019). Ragam dan Arah Pertanyaan Penyidik dalam Berita Acara Pemeriksaan Perkara Pidana Anak. Linguistik Indonesia, 36(1), 67–91. https://doi.org/10.26499/li.v36i1.73
Coulthard, M. (2016). An Introduction to Forensic Linguistics. In An Introduction to Forensic Linguistics. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315630311
Coulthard, M., & Johnson, A. (2010). The Routledge handbook of forensic linguistics. In The Routledge Handbook of Forensic Linguistics. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203855607
Coulthard, M., & Johnson, A. (2011). An Introduction to Forensic Linguistics: Language in Evidence. Routledge Taylor & Francis Group. https://doi.org/10.1201/b11275-2
Gibbons, J. (2003). Forensic Linguistics: An Introduction to Language in the Justice System. Wiley-Blackwell.
Griffiths, A., & Milne, R. (2005). Will it all end in tiers: police interviews with suspects in Britain. In T. Williamson (Ed.), Investigative Interviewing: Rights, Research, Regulation. Willan.
Harahap, Y. (2007). Pembahasan Permasalahan Dan Penerapan KUHAP: Pemeriksaan Sidang Pengadilan, Banding, Kasasi, dan Peninjauan Kembali (2nd ed.). Sinar Grafika.
Heydon, G. (2012). Helping the police with their enquiries: Enhancing the investigative interview with linguistic research. The Police Journal, 85(2), 101–122. https://doi.org/10.1350/pojo.2012.85.2.581
Jannah, J. M., Munirah, & Munir, A. (2024). Tindak Tutur pada Berita Acara Pemeriksaan sebagai Penegakan Hukum yang Setara dan Berkeadilan (Kajian Linguistik Forensik). Jurnal Riset Guru Indonesia (JGRI), 3(1), 32–38. https://doi.org/10.62388/jrgi.v3i1.401
Jannah, R. (2019). Analisis Linguistik Forensik pada Berita Acara Pemeriksaan sebagai Upaya Penegakan Hukum yang Adil dan Setara. Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Ampel.
Kassin, S. M., Leo, R. A., Meissner, C. A., Richman, K. D., Colwell, L. H., Leach, A.-M., & Fon, D. La. (2007). Police Interviewing and Interrogation: A Self-Report Survey of Police Practices and Beliefs. Law and Human Behavior, 31(1), 381–400. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10979-006-9073-5
Lee, Y. H. (2020). How Police Policies and Practices Impact Successful Crime Investigation: Factors That Enable Police Departments to “Clear” Crimes. Justice System Journal, 41(1), 37–62. https://doi.org/10.1080/0098261X.2020.1719246
Levinson, S. C. (2001). Pragmatics: Linguistic (N. J. Smelser & P. B. B. T.-I. E. of the S. & B. S. Baltes (eds.); pp. 11948–11954). Pergamon. https://doi.org/10.1016/B0-08-043076-7/03008-4
Mackey, A., & Gass, S. M. (2016). Second Language Research: Methodology and Design (2nd ed.). Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.
Mahsun. (2018). Lingustik Forensik: Memahami Forensik Berbasis Teks dengan Analogi DNA. Rajawali Pers.
Malombeke, E., Aling, D. F., & Lembong, R. R. (2021). Peranan Berita Acara Pemeriksaan Perkara (BAP) dalam Proses Peradilan Pidana. Lex Administratum, IX(4), 140–149.
McMenamin, G. R. (2008). Forensic Linguistics: Advances in Forensic Stylistics. In The Handbook of Linguistics. CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470756409.ch30
Miles, M. B., Huberman, A. M., & Saldaña, J. (2014). Qualitative Data Analysis: A Methods Sourcebook (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications, Inc.
Milne, B., & Powell, M. (2010). Investigative interviewing. In J. M. Brown & E. A. Campbell (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Forensic Psychology (pp. 208–214). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511730290.026
Milne, R., & Bull, R. (2025). Investigative Interviewing: Psychology and Practice (2nd ed.). Wiley. https://doi.org/978-1-119-80627-1
Mintowati. (2016). Pencemaran Nama Baik: Kajian Linguistik Forensik. Paramasastra, 3(2), 197–208.
Muniroh, R. D. D., & Heydon, G. (2022). Addressing the Gap Between Principles and Practices in Police Interviewing in Indonesia. Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, 37(1), 312–324. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11896-021-09474-7
Olsson, J. (2008). Forensic linguistics: Second Edition. In Handbook of Language and Communication: Diversity and Change. Continuum International Publishing Group. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003082637-25
Olsson, J. (2012). Wordcrime: Solving Crime through Forensic Linguistics. Continuum International Publishing Group.
Pangestuti, E. (2020). Tugas Penyidik di dalam Melaksanakan Pemeriksaan Terhadap Tersangka Residivis. Yustitiabelen, 6(2), 76–97. https://doi.org/10.36563/yustitiabelen.v6i2.246
Panggabean, S. (2019). Konstruksi Wacana Pemeriksaan Tersangka: Kajian Linguistik Forensik. Universitas Sumatera Utara.
Perkins, R., & Grant, T. (2013). Forensic Linguistics. In Encyclopedia of Forensic Sciences: Second Edition (2nd ed.). Elsevier Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-382165-2.00030-1
Ramadani, Syaifullah, A. R., Gunawan, W., Kusrini, D., Rahayu, S., & Putra, B. C. D. (2023). Implicature and Question Types of Police Interrogation: An Analysis of Communication in a Theft Case. World Journal of English Language, 13(7), 585–596. https://doi.org/10.5430/wjel.v13n7p585
Sari, R. P., Anwar, M., & Kamal, M. (2025). Investigating Hate Speech Comments: A Forensic Linguistic Study. Austronesian: Journal of Language Science & Literature, 4(1), 47–64. https://doi.org/10.59011/austronesian.4.1.2025.47-64
Sumaljag, M. V. O. (2018). A Forensic Linguistic Analysis of Police Reports. IOSR Journal Of Humanities And Social Science (IOSR-JHSS, 23(1), 80–102. https://doi.org/10.9790/0837-23010480102
Sumampouw, N., Bjørndal, L. D., Magnussen, S., Otgaar, H., & Brennen, T. (2022). Knowledge about eyewitness testimony: a survey of Indonesian police officers and psychologists. Psychology, Crime & Law, 28(8), 763–777. https://doi.org/10.1080/1068316X.2021.1962868
Varney, M. H. (1997). Forensic Linguistics: A New, Varied and very Practical Application of Linguistic Science. English Today, 13(4), 42–47. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266078400010014
Verhoeven, W. (2018). The complex relationship between interrogation techniques, suspects changing their statement and legal assistance. Evidence from a Dutch sample of police interviews. Policing and Society, 28(3), 308–327. https://doi.org/10.1080/10439463.2016.1157594
Violine, M. (2008). Bahasa Hukum Indonesia dalam Berita Acara Pemeriksaan: Sebuah Tinjauan Mengenai Keefektifan Kalimat. Universitas Indonesia.
Yu, H., & Monas, N. (2020). Recreating the Scene: An Investigation of Police Report Writing. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication, 50(1), 35–55. https://doi.org/10.1177/0047281618812441
Yule, G. (2020). The Study of Language (7th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Indah Permata Sari, I Nyoman Kardana, I Nyoman Muliana

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.











