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I've told this story on here before. When I was 16 or 17, the place I was working got robbed. The guy just opened the register while I was fixing part of the greenhouse building.

The police showed up and took my statement, in which I said I didn't hear a car, so I assume he just ran off.

They took me in about two weeks later for an official statement. Then told me I had to take a polygraph because my stories didn't match. The story didn't change. The officer at the scene wrote that I said I saw the guy run off.

I was shitting bricks. A cop friend of my parents told me that this was common. They didn't have a suspect, I was a young kid, so they were just trying to get me to admit to it. He said they would tell me I failed the polygraph test and to just come clean.

That's what they did. They tried to pin it on me, but I legit didn't do it, so I would never confess. Even after they tried the 'you'll only get probation of you confess now, but if this goes to trial you'll be tried as an adult' nonsense.

And that's the story of how I learned to never, ever, ever speak to a police officer without legal counsel, even if you're straight up the victim in the situation.

What a fucking mess this country is in terms of policing.

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galkk 4 days ago | parent | next [-]

This is just wtf…

In my origin country they require witnesses to sign off witness statements. This isn’t the case here, in the US?

How you were summoned? Was it official? What if you’d shown with lawyer?

I think that now it’s already established that polygraphs are bullshit. Could you refuse it?

	▲	Loughla 4 days ago \| parent \| next [-]
		I was summoned by a detective calling me and telling me I had to come to the station. I was 16 or 17 and didn't know any better. I'm not sure it was official, but I have no idea how that works. Witness statements are supposed to be signed. I never even saw the reports from any of the cops I interacted with. I think they were just lying the entire time. They told me I didn't need a lawyer if I was innocent. And because I was 16 or 17, I believed them. I'm hindsight, I would've had a lawyer immediately. It's a fucking mess, but it's pretty standard practice at the garbage police station where I grew up. I'm assuming it's like that in more places.
	▲	rendall 4 days ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		> Could you refuse it? Definitely, unless ordered by a judge. He needed a lawyer to advise him.

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criddell 4 days ago | parent | prev [-]

Did you take the polygraph?

	▲	Loughla 4 days ago \| parent [-]
		Like I said. Yes I did and they said I failed, just like my cop friend told me they would. They were just using it to try to get me to confess. Subsequently, it's your answers that are admissable in court, not the results. If you're ever given a polygraph, they will ask you to lie on a question or two "as a baseline." Refuse to do that. They will use it against you.