Polygraph Admitted to Explain Police Questioning

When the defendant testified that his confession was coerced, it opened the door to cross-examinations about the his polygraph test.

 

United States v. Tenorio, 2015 BL 428927, 10th Cir., No. 15-2037, 12/29/15

    The court ruled that the government had a strong interest in giving the jury a more complete picture of what the defendant indicated was an aggressive interrogation, so the judge admitted the fact that the police had obtained the confession after a polygraph test had been administered.

    The defendant had previously testified that he was bullied into writing a confession and did not understand why the agents kept accusing him of lying and telling only "half the story." The judge limited the admission of the polygraph to only explain the officer's actions and directed the jurors to not speculate about the results of the polygraph.

http://www.bloomberglaw.com/public/desktop/document/United_States_v_Tenorio_No_152037_2015_BL_428927_10th_Cir_Dec_29_?1452526628