In an article titled, “Long arm of the law reaches out for help,” San Diego Union-Tribune staff writer Shanna McCord reports on the SDPD pre-employment polygraph failure rate. Excerpt:
And then there’s a lie detector test, which weeds out a large number of applicants.
“Number one for us is honesty,” said Stacee Botsford, a recruiter for the San Diego Police Department, which operates with 2,100 sworn officers. “We can’t take anyone who lies or tells half-truths or omits information.”
Botsford says 40 percent of San Diego police applicants – 2,300 a year for about 100 to 150 openings – fail the lie detector test.