In an article titled, “DNA testing clears name of Kansan in rape case,” the Associated Press reports on the case of Eddie James Lowery, who falsely confessed to rape after failing a polygraph “test.” As a result of the polygraph-induced false confession, Lowery, a soldier then stationed at Ft. Riley, Kansas, spent ten years in prison and received a dishonorable discharge. Excerpt:
Lowery was linked to the rape when he was involved in a traffic wreck in Ogden. Police questioned Lowery, then a soldier stationed at Fort Riley, because they knew he had been in the area. He denied any connection.
Lowery agreed to take a polygraph test. Police told him he failed. Hours of police interrogation followed. Desperate to get out of the situation, Lowery confessed.
“They broke me down,” he said Thursday. “I told them what they wanted to hear.”
Jurors found him guilty and sentenced him to 11 years to life in prison.
Polygraph “testing” is a pseudoscientific fraud used by police as a pretext for interrogating a suspect in the absence of legal counsel. Anyone asked to submit to a polygraph “test” in connection with a crime should refuse and seek competent legal advice.