Original reporting and commentary about polygraphs, voice stress analyzers, and other purported "lie detectors."
The Washington Times published a letter by AntiPolygraph.org co-founder George Maschke in response to Ann Geracimos’ 9 Jan. 2003 article, “Interpreting a polygraph test.” Excerpt: “Interpreting a polygraph test” (Metropolitan, yesterday) only scratches the surface in explaining how polygraph tests are interpreted. The dirty little secret of the polygraph community is that the “test” depends …
Ann Geracimos reports for the Washington Times. Unfortunately, it seems that Mrs. Geracimos interviewed only polygraphers for this article, and in explaining to her how polygraph “tests” are interpreted, they apparently neglected to explain the trickery behind “control” questions. Excerpt: The word “polygraph” means “many writings” in graph form — a simple definition that gets …
The FBI’s nationwide dragnet for suspected terrorist infiltrators was based on an apparently bogus tip from accused Canadian forger Michael Hamdani. In a 3 January 2003 Washington Post article titled “Fake-ID Arrest Led to FBI Hunt,” staff writer John Mintz reported that U.S. and Canadian investigators had questioned Hamdani extensively using polygraph machines. U.S. President …
Shannon P. Duffy of The Legal Intelligencer reports. Excerpt: Requiring sex offenders to submit to random lie-detector tests during the probationary period after release from prison is not unconstitutional, but forbidding them from owning a computer may be going too far, a federal appeals court has ruled. In a pair of opinions handed down this …
Ranjani Ramaswamy reports for The Indian Express. Excerpt: Mumbai, January 7: WE wasted reams of newsprint wondering if Salman Khan had indeed been driving that night. His inebriation aside, how could it have been conclusively verified beyond any doubt that his was actually the hand on the steering wheel? The truth, concurs Dr C R …
Brendan I. Koerner writes for The Village Voice. Excerpt: Q: I’ve been asked by a potential employer to take a lie-detector test. There was a fair amount of pot smoking in my distant past, and I’m worried it’ll disqualify me from the job, which I desperately need. Aren’t there ways to beat the machine? Before …
The Saipan Times has published a letter to the editor from AntiPolygraph.org co-founder George Maschke. Excerpt: The CMNI Department of Public Safety’s decision to require Police Academy applicants to take polygraph tests beginning January 2003 is a mistake. The U.S. National Academy of Sciences has recently completed a detailed study of polygraph screening and found …
Denver Post staff writer Ryan Morgan reports. Excerpt: Thursday, December 26, 2002 – Ben Aragon swears he’s telling the truth. The polygraph machine he’s hooked up to isn’t so sure. So Aragon, who has been taking polygraph exams since he was put on probation for sexually assaulting his girlfriend two years ago, is fighting the …
The following short article from the KETV website is cited here in full: OMAHA, Neb. — A racial slur found inside an Omaha police precinct has one city council member upset. Councilman Frank Brown said he wants police to take a lie-detector test. The slur was found on Thanksgiving Day inside the northeast precinct. Omaha …
Omaha World Herald staff writer Karyn Spencer reports in an article titled, “Closer look into slur requested.” Councilman Frank Brown will ask the Omaha City Council to press for further investigation into who wrote a racial slur at a police precinct. Brown said Monday he plans to introduce a resolution Jan. 7 asking the Police …