My experience with the FBI polygraph, as stated earlier, is a bit lenghty, but needs to be told. I'd like to give a little backgroung information about my self before I begin to share the most humiliating, degrading, and insulting experience of my life. In 1994, I graduated from college with a Bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice. I was also an athlete during my entire college career, and was subjected to drug testing every year as part of my athletic eligability. Shortly before graduating, I applied with two State Police agencies, one major metropolitan Police Department, and one mid sized Police Department. I was successful in all four app. processes, which included complete background investigations, and I was polygraphed by the two State Police agencies. I took the job I now have before I was polygraphed by the other two Police Departments. I have been employed as a State Trooper, in a mid western state, for the last seven years. At no time during any of the 4 background investigations did any indication of drug use become an issue. The reason is because I disclosed my only drug experience, a one time marijuana use during my freshman year, to my background investigators, and my polygraph examiners. I passed both polygraphs, which included questions about drug history, sales and so forth, with no problems. I began my career as a Trooper, and took a particular interest in highway drug interdiction. I received extensive training in this area, and have attended several drug related training seminars which were sponsered by various Federal LEA's. I have also become a Certified Drug Recognition Expert...certified by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and the International Association Of Chiefs Of Police. I have worked extremely hard to establish an impressive work record, which includes a Law Enforcement Officer Of The Year Award from Optimist International. I have also been the leader in drug related arrests in my region for the last six consecutive years. In 2001 I obtained a Masters degree in Criminal Justice Administration and decided pursue a life long dream. I submitted an application to the FBI. I was given a conditional offer of employment by the FBI and began the final steps in the selection process. During the Personal Security Interview, I disclosed the details of my drug use, and I also disclosed information about a significant drug related incident which happened to me while performing my duties as a State Trooper. In 1999, During a car search, I was stabbed with a hypodermic syringe, which was loaded with methamphetamine. The "owner" of the syringe was later confirmed to be HIV positive at the time of this incident. AS a precaution, my employer required that I participate in a year long exposure control treatment program for drug and HIV exposure. I also received counseling for a significant period of time to help deal with the fears and anxieties one might expect to accompany such an experience. The FBI requested, and I supplied, all related departmental reports surrounding this incident including a subsequent death cirtificate of the HIV positive individual. My applicant coordinator indicated that this incident shouldn't affect my chances of becoming an Agent. I was subsequently scheduled for a polygraph test on July 3, 2002. I arrived at the FBI building and met with my polygraph examiner. She conducted the standard pre test interview in which I disclosed my drug history. She inquired about the incident involving the syringe, and I explained all the details to her. She also had the reports in her file. She also asked if I had done research on polygraphs. I told her I had not, which was true. (At the time I did not think I needed to worry about the polygraph test, not only b/c I had passed both prior tests I had taken, but because I believed that if I told the truth there would be no problems.) After the pre test interview was over, she sat me in the chair and hooked me up to the machine. She did not conduct a "Stim test" but began the first "chart" with the questions relating to National Security. After the first chart was completed, she came over, inspected my fingers (the ones with the electrodes attached to them) and then applied a liquid substance to them. I did not know the reason for this so I asked her. She said my fingers were not sweating properly, and I was not producing a proper response. She then went back to her desk behind me and began the second "chart" by saying, "This test is about to begin." Almost immediately she said, "This test is now over". She came back and looked at my fingers again. She then unhooked me from the machine and took me to a bathroom and told me to wash my hands with warm water. I did as she asked, and then was hooked back up to the machine. Again she started and stopped the test after only a few seconds. She removed the electrodes from my fingers. She replaced the electrodes with new or different ones and reconnected me. Again she started and stopped the test after only a few seconds. This time she left the room with out an explaination, and without unhooking me from the machine. She returned after a period of approximately 15 minutes. I could hear her messing around with the instrument behind me. Because of my prior polygraph tests, I thought something was going wrong. I became a bit nervous and I told her so. She stated that she was having equipment problems. I asked her what the problem was and she said, "It's too technical for you to understand. I need you to sit there and relax." She then left the room again with out further explaination, and with me still hooked up to the machine. She returned after 15-20 minutes and again began fiddleing with the machine. She fidled for a few minutes and then told me that she had an equipment failure and we would not be able to continue the test. I asked if there was another machine we could use and she said no, I would need to reschedule the test on another day. She was holding one of the machines pens in her hand, and sahe stated that the counterweight had fallen off and she could not fix it. I contacted my applicant coordinator and rescheduled my test. On July 11, 2002 I returned to the FBI building for the second attempt at the polygraph test. I was met by my examiner (same as the first one), and taken directly to the polygraph room. She said, "We don't need to waste time with another interview we'll just get right to it." She asked me again if I had done research on polygraphs, or if I had spoken to anyone about what had happened on the las t test. I told her the truth. I had not done any research, but had spoken to one of the Criminal Investigators with my Department. She asked if he was a polygraph examiner, and also what had we spoken about. Again, I told her the truth. He was not a polygraph examiner, he had laughed at what had happened, and told me not to worry about the test. She then said, "OK" and she then hooked me up to the machine. She started with the National Security questions first. She went through 3 "charts". For each "chart" she told me to simply respond with a "yes", or "no", to the questions she would be asking. After those charts were completed she moved on to the drug related and what she called, "employment suitability" questions. For the first "chart" she said to respond with a verbal "yes", or "no" just as before. For the second "chart" she said, "repeat the last word of each question I ask, then respond with a verbal yes, or no." For the third chart, she told me "Do not to respond verbally, but rather nod your head slightly up or down for yes, or side to side for no. At the conclusion of the third "chart", she left the room for approximately 10 minutes. When she returned she stood directly in front of me and said, "Congratulations, I'm satisfied with your charts, and I'm going to recomend that you be continued in the selection process." I was then unhooked from the machine. She then stated that my charts had to be reviewed by quality control in Washington, and asked if needed would I return to be retested. I told her I would, and then I left the building. On July 19. 2002 I received a phone call from my applicant coordinator stating that I needed to reschedule another polygraph test. I asked why, and she either could not, or would not give me an answer. She simply stated that due to the 9-11 thing, Headquarters wanted to be sure about everything. I rescheduled my third test for July 23, 2002. I arrived for the third test and again was met by the same examiner. She again stated that we were not going to do an interview, and we would get right to it. She asked again if I had done any research on polygraph testing. I told her I had been on the internet, and had spoken to a polygraph examiner about why I was returning for a third time. She asked me what specific sites I had gone to on the internet. I answered her truthfully. I told her I had gone to "The Polygraph Place", "How stuff works", and "AntiPolygraph". She asked if I had learned anything, and if I planned to use any thing I read to try to help my test. Again I told her the truth, that I planned only to tell the truth. She said good and then hooked me up. The third test began again with the National Security questions and she told me to answer the questions verbally with a "yes" or "no". Before the test began she told me I was breathing too slowly, and I needed to breath faster. She also stated that some people try to "help" their test results by doing things to change the results. She said that if she thought I was doing that she would immediately disqualify me from the process. She then conducted three "charts". After that was finished, she moved on to the drug related questions. This time she questioned me about the incident with the needle and said she was going to use that as a question on my test. She also told me that she wanted to conduct a "Stim test". She used the numbers format in which she had me write a number on a sheet of paper and then she told me to lie when she asked me if I wrote that number. After the "Stim test she said that she could definately tell when I lied, but did not show me the "chart", nor explain how she could tell I was lying. She then told me a story about a person who was a new agent in the FBI Academy. She said that a a Field Agent, who was conducting a separate investigation, had produced a cooperating witness that informed the FBI that one of his former drug dealers was in the FBI Academy. She asked me if I could imagine how embarrassed the FBI was that a drug dealer had gotten through, and was in their academy. I said "wow", and agreed that it must have been very embarrassing. I thought nothing more about her story untill I read read some of the information on this site. She started the drug related questions and stated that she did not want me to respond verbally, but only with a slight head nod. She conducted three "charts". Immediately after the third "chart" was completed she pulled her chair in front of me and sat down. She said that she could not pass me based on my "charts". She asked if anything bothered me about the questions she had asked. I told her that I thought it was unfair that she had asked me questions about the incident with the needle. She said, "I'm past that issue." She held up a "chart", folded it in half and placed it in my lap. She told me to point to the "biggest bump" I saw, and I did. She said that was my response to the question about my drug use. She then told me to point to the "second biggest bump", and I did. She said that was my response to the question about selling drugs. I told her there must be a mistake because I had told her about my drug use, and I had never sold any drugs. She then said, "The only way I can retest you is if I gave me a reason to." I asked her what she wanted and she suggested that I would have to tell her that I had done some other drugs and that I was just afraid to talk about it, or that I had sold drugs. I became very angry and again told her there was no way the results were correct, I reiterated that I had told her the truth, I had passed two other State Police polygraphs, and drug use or sales was never an issue. She then said, "I can be as off the record as anyone." She again told me that I had to give her "something" in order to be retested." I was completely floored, angry, and totally confused by what she was saying. I told her, "My integrity is far to important to me to tell you I have done something which I have not, just to get another test." I also said, "If that's the only way to get another test I will remove my self from this process." She said "OK", unhooked me from the machine and I left. The following day, I called the Applicant Coordinator. She was not available at the time I called. I left a message asking her to call me back because I wanted to appeal the results of the test and wanted to know who I needed to speak with. I have received no return phone call from anyone with the FBI. I did however receive a form letter stating that my polygraph results were not within acceptable paramaters, and I was being removed from the selection processs. As you can imagine, I have been completely humiliated by this experience, and my life long dreams have been CRUSHED. I fear that this experience will have a negative impact on my current law enforcement career. I would like to hear from someone who can tell me if my experience was unusual, and what I can expect to happen in the future. I will be glad to give more specific details of my polygraph test in a later post if it is necessary. Please help.
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