out of the blue Request for POLY for Marine Reservist

[CaptainCrunch]

Hi, I am an MI specialist in the Marine Corps Reserve. I have a current TS/SCI. Everything seems fine, no derogatory information that I can think of. This is the second TS/SCI clearance I had that was just adjudicated favorably 1.5 years ago. I don't have an arrests, DUI's or anything like that, no financial problems or anything.

All of a sudden, i received an email telling me the Navy wants to do a poly on me and to call and arrange it? I have nothing to hide, but arranging this is going to be a real pain, as its out of town. Why would this happen all of a sudden and do I have to do it? What are my options?

[George W. Maschke]

You might be asked to take a polygraph if you're going to be working on a "code word" (TS-SCI) project. Another possibility is that you are the target of an espionage investigation and that the polygraph will be used as a pretext to interrogate you without a lawyer present. In such an eventuality, your "failing" may be part of the interrogation plan.

If you refuse the polygraph, it's likely that your SCI access will be revoked. Your security clearance might also be suspended (and possibly revoked).

Before your polygraph interrogation, you'll want to educate yourself about this pseudoscientific procedure. See our e-book, The Lie Behind the Lie Detector for a detailed description of what you can look forward to.

[CaptainCrunch]

OK, I have an update. I was totally confused as to why this occurred as well. Upon investigation is said to be routine associated with my past foreign travel. Its supposed to be CI, but not sure what they are going to enquire about. I have nothing to hide and always reported both foreign travel and foreign contacts. Nobody else I know had to do this though. Thanks for your advice.