Ashley Todd
The story of
Ashley Todd, a McCain campaign volunteer from College Station, Texas who reported that in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a mugger
scratched a letter "B" into her face after seeing a McCain bumper sticker on her car, received national attention after it was highlighted on the right-leaning political website, the
Drudge Report.
Jill King Greenwood of the Pittsburgh
Tribune-Review reports that Pittsburgh police now wish to polygraph Todd regarding the incident:
Quote:A knife-wielding man robbed a McCain-Palin campaign volunteer and etched a "B" into her face after he saw a McCain bumper sticker on her car, the woman told Pittsburgh police.
Police planned to administer a polygraph test to Ashley Todd, 20, because her statements about the attack conflict with evidence from the Citizens Bank ATM where she claims the incident occurred, police said.
Todd, of College Station, Texas, told police she was using an ATM at Liberty Avenue and Pearl Street in Bloomfield just before 9 p.m. Wednesday when a man approached her, put a knife to her throat and demanded money.
...
Todd would be wise to refuse the polygraph, whether or not she is telling the truth. Polygraphy has
no scientific basis to begin with, and as used by police in criminal investigations, it often serves as little more than a pretext for interrogating a suspect without a lawyer present. The fact that Pittsburgh police have leaked news of their planned lie detector test, along with the claim that ATM surveillance video contradicts Todd's report, suggests that they have already formed an opinion that Todd has not been fully truthful (and are seeking to manage public perceptions).
In this case, it seems likely that the polygraph will be used in much the same manner as the legendary colander attached to a photocopier: