I was set to graduate in May of 2009 from a great school with a Bachelor's Degree in Law Enforcement. I have wanted to be a police officer for a long time and growing up I was always doing things with the police and staying away from drugs and crime.
In Nov. 2008 I applied for the United States Border Patrol and passed the written test with a 93%. I was a very good student, had years of Spanish under my belt, and was more physically fit than many of the kids my age. I was READY to work the Border.
As the hiring process went on I passed everything beautifully, like I knew I would, like the oral, medical, physical exams and even the majority of the background investigation. I remember waiting anxiously for any news about my status, seeing that I would be graduating from college in less than 6 months and was ready to have a job lined up.
I got a call one day from a polygraph examiner by the name of Mike Cerot (or Serot) who basically
TOLD me that I had to report to take a polygraph on a specific day at a specific time less than a week away. Being ready for a job and having nothing to hide I made the 400+ mile drive to the nearest CBP location to take the test. I didn't research polygraphs because I didn't have anything to hide and wasn't even nervous.
I remember getting to the building and waiting in the waiting room. Mr. Cerot came out to greet me and led me to a window-less conference room in the office suite. There was one door in, a large table spanning the length of the room in the middle and two chairs at the far end of the room, one in the corner.
I was directed to sit in the chair in the corner and told to relax while I watched as Mr. Cerot set up a laptop and attached various cords and whatnots to it. I was actually interested and intrigued as to how the whole process worked. While he was setting it up he began explaining to me that he has performed polygraph examinations for over ten years with the Central Intelligence Agency and is now working with the Customs and Border Protection to polygraph new applicants. I remember him telling me "Your body is going to tell me if you lie. You are going to know it, and you are going to make it known to me. Let me tell you, this never fails. It always works. Always."
I didn't know what to make of that and I actually believed that my body would let him know. (Had I done some research I would've known that he was full of crap and that he was using scare tactics on me).
Once he was done setting up he began talking to me and asking me all sorts of questions asking about personal relationships ("Do you hate your parents?") and weird questions ("Have you ever had sex with any domesticated animals?"), all of which -even though weird- I answered truthfully. This little interview didn't last very long and Mr. Cerot was very reassuring adding comments about his own personal experiences that seemed to match mine.
He told me that he was going to hook me up to the machine so he could get it tuned and explained each of the parts to me as he put them on. I was still fascinated by it. We began a practice test which consisted of him writing the number 4 on a piece of paper and having me say "no" when asked if the number was a 4. I thought it was stupid and pointless at the time, but whatever, this guy knows what he is doing.
When the real test was about to begin he said he would go over the questions to make sure I wasn't surprised by any of them. I can't remember them all now, but they were common questions about lying to loved ones, stealing, using drugs, etc. etc... things I haven't ever experienced or had a problem with.
We did the test. It took a while. I felt completely comfortable and fine.
We took the test again. Same thing. Fine as wine.
After the third time the test ended Mr. Cerot (who had appeared friendly to me throughout the entire experience) became very agitated and began typing and clicking on his laptop. I just continued to sit in my chair, happy to be done with the test and wondering when I could go to the bathroom and have a break (we had been in the room for almost 3 hours). With a loud exhaled breath Mr. Cerot became angry and spun the laptop around showing me a series of graphs with waves running across the screen. He said to me "DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING AT?"
"No."
"THIS IS QUESTION 3. YOU HAVE BEEN HIDING SOMETHING FROM ME, SHOWN EACH TIME YOU ANSWERED THE QUESTION (pointing to a specific crested section of the charts). DO YOU KNOW WHAT QUESTION 3 IS?"
"No."
"QUESTION 3 IS THE DRUG QUESTION."
When he said those words, my mind went berserk. I had never even SEEN or SMELLED any drugs! How could I fail THIS question???? Out of all of them, the DRUG one?!?!? I was so shocked! I didn't know what to say to him and I imagine that I looked white as a ghost.
I remember him saying "You aren't telling me something. I know it. You know it. Tell me what it is. If you tell me what it is I can make it all go away. I have a magic eraser that can make anything go away, as long as you tell me what it is."
I was scared to death. I sat there trying to think of anything that I had experienced in my lifetime that would even be close to USING DRUGS.
I remember shaking my head constantly and repeating "I haven't ever done anything like that"...
At that time he said "Alright. Im going to give you a break to walk around and use the bathroom, and I am going to make some calls."
I was booted into the hallway outside of the suite. I couldn't breathe, my mind was racing, searching, struggling to find something. Anything. Nothing was coming to mind. I waited in agony for 15 minutes racking my brain until I was invited to come back into the suite.
We went back into the room and sat back down. It felt different that time. His attitude made me feel like he was going to pull out some rolled up torture tools and start pulling out my fingernails... "SO" he asked "have you thought of anything you want to tell me?"
"No. I honestly can't think of anything to tell you sir" I said holding back my tears. I was SO frustrated!
"Well I am afraid that there is nothing I can do for you further if you aren't going to tell me what you are hiding. I know that you are hiding this from me and I don't know why. Like I said, I can make things go away. A guy that I tested yesterday admitted to using drugs 3500 times and guess what... HE gets a job! It's that simple. If you are done talking then I am afraid that we are done here. You can't ignore this. THIS is huge. Like ignoring a 400 pound Gorilla in the room."
I was absolutely devastated inside. Physically, mentally and emotionally drained.
When I told my family and friends that I failed the test because of suspected drug use, they all laughed and thought I was joking with them; knowing that I don't have/never have had anything to do with drugs. Some people suggested that they were just messing with me to see if I would change my attitude or admit something during the test, something I tried to believe.
I got a letter in the mail two days after graduation informing me that I was no longer being considered an applicant for the Border Patrol.
It haunted me. I was petrified of the drug question and polygraphs. I remember asking myself at random times "Have you ever used illegal drugs?" and then responding to myself with a stern "NO."
Applying for police officer positions in the United States that don't require applicants to take a polygraph is tough. The only state that doesn't require polygraphs is Michigan, and they are laying off more police officers than anywhere.
I applied and tested for a PD in Northeastern Wyoming in May of 09. Passed everything gloriously, except for one question. On the polygraph. The question that I had been DREADING hearing since the last time it was asked of me. I failed. The examiner called me a liar and told me that I was full of $hit and that he wasn't buying any of my story. I didn't get that job.
The polygraph has haunted me. I am thankful for this site because I NOW know that I am not alone in my struggle and that many are struggling with me, ESPECIALLY now since seeing the article recently put out about the Border Patrol's failure of 60% of the total 10% of applicants over the past hiring year.
With my career in jeopardy, I don't know where to turn. I want to be a police officer but I have a very large mountain in my way resembling the polygraph. At 23, I am now forced to stick with my security job or entirely change careers.
Good luck everyone. And thanks for letting me vent.
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Part of the 60% failed Border Patrol applicants (Read 182407 times)
