NCJ Number
199514
Journal
Journal of Forensic Identification Volume: 53 Issue: 2 Dated: March/April 2003 Pages: 169-184
Date Published
March 2003
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This article reviews a 1996 case that used Situational Sequencing Tests (SST) in polygraph examinations to further demonstrate the value of SST as a complement to other polygraph examination techniques.
Abstract
In 1992 the author initiated the use of sequential polygraph examinations to complement other polygraph examination techniques. SST was used to test the subject regarding issues in the context of various roles related to the crime, i.e., as witness, as accomplice, and as the perpetrator. In the 1996 case that is the subject of this article, two persons suspected to be involved in some role in a homicide case in Poland were administered SST. One of the men was eventually charged with committing two murders, and the second man was charged with not reporting the witnessed murder to the authorities. Under the SST, the physiological reactions of the examined persons were considerably varied in accordance with the actual roles and behaviors they performed in the course of the crime. Each man's reactions in various types of tests and to particular questions provided additional bases for assuming that the investigative hypotheses regarding the participation of each man in the crime were sound. SST performed with each man in the "witness" and "perpetrator" versions clearly showed that the shooter reacted more strongly to questions related to the shooting behaviors; whereas, the other man reacted more strongly to questions related to witnessing behavior. The author concludes that the SST technique should complement other polygraph examination techniques, particularly the Control Question Test (Reid Technique). 8 charts and 3 references