- Hopefully you've never had to take a lie detector test.
For some people, taking a lie detector test proves their innocence. For others, it shows they’re guilty, or so says the test.
Sherri Rasmussen
Nurse Sherri Rasmussen was 29 when she was brutally murdered in her Los Angeles home. Though the case
went cold for over 20 years without leads or suspects, it wasn’t until the advancement of DNA technology and the persistence of her family that the case had a breakthrough in 2009. The crazy twist was that a former LAPD detective by the name of Stephanie Lazarus became a suspect after finding out that Lazarus has a personal connection with Rasmussen. Rasmussen had dated Lazarus’ husband prior to the marriage. When Lazarus was questioned about the crime, deception was detected. Along with DNA evidence that linked her to the murder scene, the lie detector results secured the case to arrest and convict Lazarus. In the end, Lazarus was sentenced to 27 years in prison.
Richard Madden
Richard Madden of Cecil County became a person of interest after Kami Ring, 10, was raped and murdered near her home. For whatever reason, Madden agreed to take a lie detector test to prove he was innocent, though that isn’t how it all went down. According to the retired Maryland State Police officer that administered the test, Madden was lying about his involvement in the case. It turns out that his stepparents owned the home that Kami disappeared from in Port Deposit. Ring thought of the couple as her grandparents even though they weren’t related. The day after she was reported missing, her body was found about 60 yards from the home. Madden’s lie detector test proved that he was a suspect and he was also linked to the murder scene via DNA and then charged with the rape and murder of Kami Ring.
James Elkins
James Elkins of Oregon was wrongly convicted of raping a young girl based on an eyewitness misidentification. He served several years in prison until new DNA showed evidence that exonerated him. The reinvestigation showed that the polygraph tests were looked at again to check the reliability and credibility of the potential suspects and witnesses. Ultimately, the DNA evidence led to the actual perpetrator.
Luke Mitchell
Another case where a man was convicted of murdering a young girl happened to Luke Mitchell. He was serving a life sentence in Shotts Prison when officials allowed him to take another lie detector test (a test that was later released on YouTube.) Among the questions asked of Mitchell, they questioned him with:
- “Were you present when Jodi was stabbed?”
- “Did you stab Jodi on 30 June, 2003?”
Mitchell said “no” to both questions and according to the test, he was telling the truth and continued to talk of his innocence. Unfortunately for Mitchell, in Scottish courts, polygraph tests are inadmissible and he will remain behind bars until more evidence can prove his innocence.
Weleetka Murders
A polygraph test was the final conviction in the case of the Weleetka murders that happened in 2008, according to Oklahoma police. Through the course of the investigation, the bureau’s investigative until got Kevin Sweat to take a polygraph test that eventually led to Sweat’s father’s land where they found the charred
remains of his fiancee and several .40 caliber casings. The thing is, the casings matched a gun that was used in the Weleetka murders, a case that had gone unsolved. Sweat wasn’t even being considered by the police until he said he’d take the polygraph. Sweat is now sitting awaiting his sentence regarding the murder of his finace and the murder of Taylor Paschal-Placker of Weleetka.
Did you know about these cases? Let me know in the comments!