As noted on the AntiPolygraph.org news page, the Shawnee County, Kansas Sheriff's Department is asking the county commissioners for funding to buy a polygraph instrument and train a polygrapher, on the ground that polygraphs are more reliable than voice stress analyzers (which the sheriff's department is currently using).

Shawnee County officials need to know about the lie behind the lie detector before spending taxpayer dollars to trade one pseudoscientific form of lie detection for another. They need to understand that polygraphy has not been shown by competent research to operate at better than chance levels of accuracy under field conditions, that it has a built-in bias against the truthful, and that polygraph "tests" are easily beaten through the use of readily-learned countermeasures.

While lie detectors may be useful for duping naive and gullible suspects into confessing, no one should be included or excluded as a suspect based on these pseudoscientific "tests." And these "tests" must never be relied upon to assess the honesty and integrity of employees and applicants for employment.

Shawnee County Sheriff Dick Barta may be reached by e-mail to richard.barta@co.shawnee.ks.us or at (785) 368-2207.

The three-member Shawnee County Board of Commissioners includes:

• Chairman Vic Miller Commission@co.shawnee.ks.us .
  
  
• Vice-Chairwoman Marice Kane Commission@co.shawnee.ks.us .
  
  
• Ted Ensley Commission@co.shawnee.ks.us .
  

Reporter Alicia Henrikson of the Topeka Capital-Journal, who wrote about the sheriff's request for a polygraph instrument and training, can be reached by e-mail to ahenrikson@cjonline.com .

Contact them and tell them the truth about lie detectors.

Last modification: George Maschke - 01/31/01 at 13:37:52