Hi everyone. I won't go into the details of what I have been accused of and what I had to plea to in order to have some semblance of control back in my life, but it does revolve around the infamous "sex offender management" in the state of Colorado. Suffice it to say that I am misdemeanor and I did not harm anyone.
Now, they want me to take a "Full Sexual History Disclosure" ploygraph exam and I am terrified of false positives. I have nothing in my life to be ashamed of, but am a naturally emotional person and I can feel myself physically reacting when I think about the situation I am in and the types of questions that they are going to ask me. I am actually tearful as I write this. :'( :'( :'(
I have dowloaded the material, but am still afraid of my reactions. Any special, useful advice?
I am also interested to find out if anyone knows about the nuances of this sexual history polygraph -- I want to be able to be as calm as possible and don't need any suprises.
Mortified,
I suggest that you carefully read and re-read Chapters 3 & 4 of
The Lie Behind the Lie Detector (http://antipolygraph.org/pubs.shtml). You'll learn how polygraph "tests" really work (and don't) and how to minimize the chances of your becoming a false positive. For further reading on polygraphy, see Professor David T. Lykken's book,
A Tremor in the Blood: Uses and Abuses of the Lie Detector.With regard to post-conviction sex offender "testing" in Colorado, there is an article in
Polygraph, the quarterly publication of the American Polygraph Association, titled "Integration of Polygraph Testing with Sexual Offenders in the Colorado Department of Corrections" by Peggy Heil, Sean Ahlmeyer, Burl McCullar, and Bonita McKee (Vol. 29 [2000], No. 1, pp. 26-35) which will be of interest to you. The article describes a ruse designed to encourage admissions whereby subjects are (falsely) threatened with increased sanctions if they fail to make admissions after a "deception indicated" outcome:
Quote
Sanctioning Deception
The CDOC [Colorado Department of Corrections] is currently sanctioning deception as a means of improving the efficacy of the polygraph. It is common knowledge among polygraphers that the reliability and validity of polygraphy is greatly increased when the offender expects a consequence for lying....
Approximately 80% of CDOC sexual offenders tested without standardized sanctions continued to be deceptive on subsequent polygraphs. As a result, the CDOC developed the Colorado Department of Corrections Polygraph Sanctions Grid (CPSG) to improve the effectiveness of polygraph as a deterrent to reoffense and encourage admissions to deviant behavior. See "The Value of the Post-Conviction Polygraph: The Importance of Sanctions" paper in this issue for an in-depth analysis of sanctions being used across the nation.
The original idea for the grid design was presented by Walt Simon and John Murphy, community treatment providers, at a meeting to discuss these issues in March 1998. The SOTMP [Sex Offender Treatment and Monitoring Program] and Division of Adult Parole met numerous times to identify appropriate standard sanctions for sexual offenders who were deceptive on polygraph exams. The basic concept of the grid is an offender would earn progressively severe sanctions based on the severity of the behavior and whether he admitted to engaging in the behavior. The CPSG provides a comprehensive summary of disclosures, rationalizations made to explain deception, and question results. This system encourages honesty and applies an early intervention before the deviant behavior can progress to a sexual assault. The CPSG is available at the end of this paper.
...
The above-cited Colorado Dept. of Corrections Polygraph Sanctions Grid Form is simply used to encourage admissions by duping subjects into believing that they will be subject to increased sanctions if their polygraph test is scored as "deception indicated" and they make no post-test admissions.
If you haven't already done so, it would be prudent for you to speak with a lawyer regarding your situation.
George--
Thank you. Your quote just further proved what snakeoil salesmen these people are and helps me further understand the rules of the game and how to play.
I am in Ohio and before I got to court on September the 5th I have already been labeled by the Children Services as being a Sexual Predator. I was told I would be there permanently?
Is there any thing I can do if hopefully the court finds that my neice has lied.
There are just allegations right now but there is an investigation going on and frotunatly for me she has lied, recanted, and lied again. I refused the polygraph.
Thanks to this website I am convinced that a polygraph is just a LIE and I am ver serious in my conviction.
thanks again
bnickell in Ohio
to : bnickell in Ohio
hello man, looks like you are in the same boat as me my niece lied also then recented then lied then recented she destroyed my life and now i cant live with my wife and 2 little girls. My only advice to you is to get a good damn lawyer cause i know i didnt have one know i got 10 yrs probation for some something i never did.
You pled guilty Huh.
Do you know that just about every sex offender that gets caught didn't do it? Thats how they rationalize their deviant behavior. I don't know how you twisted the reality of what you did to rationalize it to yourself or family but I would LOVE to read the police report or the facts in this case just to see how innocent you really are.
After all the did plead guilty.
YOU SHOULD BE SCARED
Would you clarify that last response.
I am reading it and it does not seem to make much sense.
Quote from: george on Oct 27, 2002, 01:14 AM
You pled guilty Huh.
Do you know that just about every sex offender that gets caught didn't do it? Thats how they rationalize their deviant behavior. I don't know how you twisted the reality of what you did to rationalize it to yourself or family but I would LOVE to read the police report or the facts in this case just to see how innocent you really are.
After all the did plead guilty.
YOU SHOULD BE SCARED
Careful, George. You're wading fairly carelessly into libel territory. After all, you really don't know the guy's circumstances, do you?
Of course, given the intellectual level of your "hit-and-run" postings thus far, it's doubtful anyone would really give your opinion much weight.
Skeptic