N.J. parole board says polygraph tests effective in detecting, preventing violations by sex offenders

11-18-2009 New Jersey:

The 39-year-old convicted sex offender had been working at a Burger King restaurant for five months when a parole officer sat him down for a polygraph test.

Caught lying about his unsupervised contact with minors, he admitted being attracted to a 16-year-old co-worker.

The man’s Burger King job ended that day.

New Jersey State Parole Board Capt. Anne McGrath said it’s cases like that one that make polygraph tests a critical tool for monitoring paroled sex offenders.

"It’s information that would not have come out in a normal interview," she said. "Without the polygraph, there’s certain information or behaviors we weren’t able to determine."

The parole board started using the examinations two years ago, and
an internal study being released today says they’ve been effective in detecting and preventing parole violations even though budget restrictions have prevented the tests from being widely implemented.

Out of 236 paroled sex offenders who took polygraph tests, 86 had their supervision plans changed afterward. That includes 34 offenders who received more stringent supervision, such as out-of-state traveling restrictions or electronic monitoring.

Most of the 105 parole officers surveyed said the polygraph was useful, and 41 said they learned new information through the tests.

McGrath said sex offenders carefully plan their crimes, often shrouding their actions in layers of deception.

"They are very manipulative," she said. "We don’t always know what’s going on in their lives."

She said polygraphs also help detect early warning signs.

Under a 2005 law, all sex offenders under lifetime monitoring — which is almost all of the state’s 5,600 supervised sex offenders — are subject to at least one polygraph test every year.

Only 400 tests have been conducted so far, parole board spokesman Neal Buccino said. The state has five polygraph machines, and 11 officers have completed nine weeks of training in Philadelphia. The training and equipment was funded by a $50,000 federal grant and $16,667 in state money. ..Source.. Chris Megerian/Statehouse Bureau