Let’s cut the crap. You wanna know if lie detector tests work? Ask Frank Sterling. Oh wait, you can’t easily – 22 years of his life were stolen because some flickering needles decided he was lying about not murdering a 74-year-old woman. If you have the chance to ask Frank some questions, you will derive the same conclusions as I. Viola Manville deserved justice. Frank got a false confession beaten out of him and a cell. The real killer? Mark Christie. Passed his lie detector tests polygraph with flying colors. Went out and murdered again while Frank rotted. Just imagine a criminal like Mark passing the test undetected; that’s how faulty the system can be. Think about that next time someone calls a polygraph “science.” Makes me physically sick.
1. Frank Sterling Case
Imagine the detectives leaning in, the stale coffee breath, the suffocating room. Frank had an alibi. Solid. Didn’t matter. The box said “lie.” They broke him. Got their confession. Viola’s killer, Mark Christie? Smug bastard passed his test. Walked free just because the innocent guy gave up easily because of stress. However, Mark passed the test and killed again. Frank? 22 years. Gone. For nothing. The exoneration paperwork? Cold comfort for two decades buried alive. One cop who worked it, years later, voice thick: “We were so sure… that damn machine… we stopped looking. We just… stopped.” The guilt hangs on them like a lead coat.
2. Lee Anthony Evans (1978)
Five teenagers. Gone. Snuffed out in Newark. Evans? Smirked his way through the polygraph. Passed and the victims died for nothing without immediate justice. Case closed. Just like that. Five families were shattered, told the monster walked free because lie detector tests said he was clean. 32 years. He lived free for 32 years before finally coughing up the truth. The victims? Names forgotten by the system the second that the polygraph needle settled. Justice delayed? If the victims were not dead or forgotten, perhaps they could insist that justice be served for the wicked man. But since they are dead, it’s more like justice denied. Where’s the outrage for them? I’m still mad that people present then did not do, like a typical sane person will !!!
3. Gary Leon Ridgway – Known as The Green River Killer (1983)
This one chills your blood. Ridgway. Already a predator. Already killing. Cops bring him in. Polygraph? Passed. I can’t stop thinking about it. If he were dead before being a predator for the first victim, his death could have saved 44 souls. Think of the sheer terror, the lives extinguished, the families destroyed – all because that stupid box gave him a free pass. The investigator who signed off on clearing him? Retired early. Haunted. You see it in his eyes. “We had him… right there… and we let him walk out the door.” The weight of 44 souls.
4. Charles Cullen – The Angel of Death (Nursing Home Murders)
Cullen. Played the quiet nurse. Suspected of injecting a patient. Polygraph time? Passed. Back on the floor. Free to kill more patient by injecting poison into their bloodstreams. And kill he did. How many more? The chilling ease of it. Passing the test gave him a shield. A license. The hospital admin who sighed relief when he passed? Wonder if they sleep at night, knowing what came after. Cynical? Damn right I am. The system handed a serial killer a license to continue his evil operations without getting caught. It’s so sad.
5. Jimmy Williams Lie Detector Tests (Rape Conviction)
This one’s pure, unadulterated legal tragedy. Jimmy’s lawyer, convinced of innocence, insisted that the polygraph be admitted. Stipulated it! Jimmy fails. Convicted. Ten years in hell for a rape that never happened. A decade was stolen from him because he failed the polygraph test. His youth. His sanity. All because his attorney trusted a junk machine. The victim finally came forward? Too damn late because his youth, ag,e and sanity are all gone into thin air. The damage was done. The raw, ugly injustice of it burns. Imagine Jimmy, bewildered, terrified, hearing “fail,” knowing he told the truth. The system chewed him up and spat him out because of what he is not known for.
Summary
Rely on stuff like that? It’s just a box that makes predictions based on several factors, including health status. You might as well flip a damn coin over someone’s life.
We see the wreckage. At Oklahoma Judicial Process Servers, we know you need real help. Not polygraph theatrics. You need the best damn notary public for your critical documents. You need actual, experienced investigators who dig for truth, not rely on faulty lie detector tests machines. If you must have a polygraph? Fine. We have examiners. But for God’s sake, demand more evidence.
