NCJ Number
123833
Journal
Polygraph Volume: 19 Issue: 1 Dated: (1990) Pages: 62-67
Date Published
1990
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This study determines the opinions of Wisconsin attorneys on the courts' ruling in State v. Dean regarding polygraph examination results.
Abstract
Results were based on a survey of 160 attorneys who were grouped into users and nonusers of polygraph examinations. Results show that 83 percent of Wisconsin attorneys who have used polygraph examinations in either a stipulated or nonstipulated situation favor its use in court proceedings. Even a majority (70 percent) of those who were not polygraph users held views similar to those who were. The polygraph "user" attorneys also clearly indicated that the use of polygraph examinations was beneficial to the parties involved in a criminal case; only 4 percent felt otherwise. Therefore, there is some reason to question the merit in court decisions, such as the Dean case, in which polygraph examination results are prohibited completely for all court purposes. The opinions and views of the attorneys surveyed here do not support the position that polygraph results are of no value in court proceedings. (Author abstract modified)