I recently had an FBI poly...Prior to the poly, I admitted to using MJ five times.  As soon as I admitted that, I realized I just put a giant bullseye on my back! Following the poly, the examiner immediately told me I failed.  Then he proceeded to interrogate me for 30 minutes, but I didn't admit to any additional drug use.  He got pissed and told me to get out.

Still haven't gotten the "official" word, but I know the letter is coming soon.  The only thing I'm concerned about now is regaining my reputation.  I have an MS in Criminal Justice and it's the only thing I'm qualified to do.  I don't want to start at the bottom of some unrelated field, working for a boring corporation.  I wish I would have found this site before my poly, because I never would have went through with it.  Now every time I apply to a Federal job, it will be like playing Russian Roulette.   

Here's my question....Has anyone been offered a second poly, and then turned it down.  I think that the simple fact that the FBI is willing to re-test people shows that a false-positive is possible.   

Here's what I'm thinking:
-Send letter of appeal and FOIA request
-Hope for a re-test
-If granted, turn down the opportunity based on perceived bias.
-In the course of applying to other federal jobs, if the failed poly comes up during the background check, explain to them that "The FBI offered me a second poly, but I felt that the risk of a second false positive was too high."
-Point out that "The fact that I was offered a second poly shows that the FBI admits to the possibility of a false positive or some other type of error."

Has anyone tried this approach?

anonymous,

There is no all knowing database that law enforcement shares regarding applicant's polygraph results.  There is no 'black list.'

Many applicants who 'fail' polygraphs from one agency, pass another agency's polygraph and get hired.  (which makes no sense since all the questions are fundamentally the same.)

If BIGNUTS wants to work for the FBI he should just use countermeasures to 'pass' the second poly.   

Then he can join the club, whether he is the reincarnation of Bob Marley, a spy, or just another applicant who got a false positive.

There are 1811 positions that don't require a polygraph.

Never give up!!!!!!

Honestly, appealing to receive a second polygraph just to turn it down would be a serious waste of time.  Do you know what goes into getting a second polygraph (if you're even awarded one at all)?  If you are interested in going forward, start with your applicant coordinator.  Address a letter to him/her detailing your background, the problems your examiner indicated you had on the poly and why you think you had problems.   

After that, it's just a waiting game.  Eventually you may be approved for an "interview."  Make no mistake - it's just a polygraph without the machine (i.e. an INTERROGATION).  The interviewing agent submits the results to headquarters and then you never know...

A word of caution if considering countermeasures on a retest.  Keep in mind that the scope of questioning is extremely limited on a retest (basically, you're being tested on what you "lied" about previously).  I've been researching the polygraph for quite sometime and I still had difficulty identifying probable-lie control questions on the retest.  I really was not interested in attempting countermeasures on the retest anyway but, had I been, it would have been fairly difficult.  In fact, the retest may not have even been a PLCQT.

As far as 1811 positions not requiring a polygraph - IRS, ICE, NCIS, DSS, AFOSI, Army-CID, US Marshals Service, many OIGs, the list goes on.  It's very simple:  take all the agencies that typically receive application after application from unqualified people.  These agencies use the polygraph.  The others don't.  The "well-known" agencies receive the most applications and therefore have more to gain in using the polygraph.  Oh well...

The FBI's policy on illegal drugs states that you are unqualified if you've used MJ more than 15 times or within the past three years. Therefore, anonymous you do not know that he lied.

I don't know that turning down a retest would benefit you; moreover, taking the retest will probably result in the same outcome, as with most on this board...

Good luck either way!