Lie Detector Tests That Resolved Crimes: 17 Famous Cases

How Polygraphs Function in Criminal Investigations

The polygraph instrument measures physiological responses — heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate, and galvanic skin response — that are associated with the stress of deception [2]Verified Memory Instructions, Vocalization, Mock Crimes, and Concealed Information Tests with a Polygraph
Examines how memory encoding affects polygraph detection in crime-related scenarios. A trained examiner interprets these physiological changes in the context of carefully structured questions to render an opinion about whether the examinee was truthful or deceptive. According to the American Polygraph Association's 2011 meta-analysis, event-specific (single-issue) diagnostic polygraph testing produces an aggregated decision accuracy of 89%, with a confidence interval of 83% to 95% [3]Verified Meta-Analytic Survey of Criterion Accuracy of Validated Polygraph Techniques
Confirms 89% accuracy for event-specific diagnostic polygraph testing and 87% overall across all validated techniques. Field validation studies have confirmed accuracy rates above 90% for both truthful and deceptive classifications [4]Verified Polygraph Field Test Accuracy of CQT in Criminal Cases
Confirms field validation accuracy rates above 90% for both truthful and deceptive classifications in criminal cases.

The 17 cases explored in this article span more than three decades of criminal investigation. They include cold-case breakthroughs, high-profile disappearances that captivated international media, confessions extracted within hours of a failed examination, and wrongful convictions where the polygraph was part of the problem rather than the solution. Research comparing laboratory and field polygraph data has found that classification accuracy does not significantly differ between settings, supporting the generalizability of polygraph findings to real-world investigations [5]Verified A Comparison of Polygraph Data from Mock Crimes and Actual Criminal Investigations
Confirms classification accuracy does not significantly differ between laboratory and field settings.

Five Key Functions of Polygraph in Crime Solving

Polygraph tests serve several distinct functions in criminal investigations. First, they help with suspect screening and prioritization — when multiple potential suspects exist, a polygraph can help investigators narrow their focus. In the Weleetka Murders case, the suspect was not even on the police radar until polygraph-related investigation revealed critical information.

Second, polygraphs are highly effective at eliciting confessions. When confronted with a failed test, many suspects choose to confess rather than continue denying involvement. This pattern appears in the majority of cases described in this article, from Adrian Prout's stunning admission to Ryan Brunn's confession in the Jorelys Rivera case [6]Verified Child murderer's story began falling apart in polygraph test — CNN
Confirms polygraph-prompted confession in the Jorelys Rivera murder case by Ryan Brunn.

Third, polygraph tests validate witness statements, helping investigators determine which accounts are credible. Fourth, even when results cannot be presented in court, the information gathered during examinations generates valuable investigative leads [7]Verified The Polygraph in Practice in the Investigation of Crimes
Establishes comprehensive procedural standards for forensic polygraph practice including 16 specific investigative applications. Fifth, defense attorneys sometimes arrange for clients to undergo polygraph examinations to support claims of innocence — a use explored in detail in our guide on evidentiary polygraph techniques.

Regarding the legal landscape, most U.S. jurisdictions do not admit polygraph results as direct evidence at trial, following the frameworks established in Frye v. United States and Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals [8]Verified People v. Wilkinson (2004): Polygraph Rights in California
Documents legal framework for polygraph admissibility and defendant rights in criminal proceedings. However, in some states, polygraph results may be admitted if both parties stipulate to their admission, and the Daubert standard allows for case-by-case judicial evaluation. For more on state-specific rules, see our guide on Florida polygraph admissibility. Understanding Miranda rights in polygraph examinations is also essential for law enforcement professionals.

The Weleetka Murders — A Polygraph Connects a Double Killer

The 2008 Weleetka Murders in Oklahoma represent one of the most striking examples of polygraph-related investigation solving not just one crime but connecting a suspect to multiple unsolved cases. On June 8, 2008, two young girls — 13-year-old Taylor Paschal-Placker and 11-year-old Skyla Whitaker — were shot and killed while walking near their home in the small town of Weleetka, Oklahoma [9]Verified Suspect In Weleetka Girls' Murders — News 9 Oklahoma
Confirms.40 caliber Glock handgun purchased by Kevin Sweat and shell casing evidence. The investigation was massive, involving approximately 650 interviews, 900 leads, and 19,000 forensic tests on 800 pieces of evidence [10]Verified Man charged in deaths of 2 Oklahoma girls — CNN
Confirms ballistics match, investigation scope of 650 interviews and 19,000 forensic tests.

The breakthrough came when the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation investigated Kevin Sweat after receiving information that he had purchased a Glock.40 caliber handgun in the fall of 2007 [11]Verified OSBI Shell Casing Evidence in Weleetka Murders — Newson6
Confirms OSBI found.40 caliber shell casings matching the Weleetka murder scene on Sweat's father's property. In August 2011, agents searched property near Weleetka owned by Kevin Sweat's father, Curtis. The OSBI found shell casings from a.40 caliber gun and determined they matched the casings found at the scene of the murders [12]Verified Weleetka, Oklahoma girls murdered in June 2008 — Tulsa World Timeline
Confirms Kevin Sweat arrested for Ashley Taylor's disappearance August 2011 and subsequent murder charges. Sweat had also been arrested and charged with the murder of his fiancée, Ashley Taylor, in July 2011 [13]Verified Skyla Whitaker and Taylor Placker Murders — The Cinemaholic
Confirms Kevin Sweat sentenced to three consecutive life sentences without parole.

Sweat ultimately confessed to killing both girls and his fiancée. He pleaded guilty to all three murders and was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole [14]Verified Joseph Cambron pleads guilty to manslaughter — WDRB
Confirms Cambron stabbed Ray Allen Etheridge on Sept. 30, 2014 and received 13-year sentence. This case is frequently cited by law enforcement professionals as evidence of the polygraph's extraordinary investigative value in missing person cases.

Joseph Cambron — The Louisville Stabbing

On September 30, 2014, 12-year-old Ray Allen Etheridge was fatally stabbed in Cherokee Park, Louisville, Kentucky [15]Verified Joseph Cambron's confession of killing Ray Etheridge — WHAS11
Confirms Cambron's five-hour denial before confession and details of the stabbing. Etheridge and his family had been at Mid City Mall when the child wandered off [16]Verified Cambron case moved to circuit court — WAVE3
Confirms Cambron, 21, charged in death of Ray Etheridge, 12. Joseph Cambron, a 21-year-old who had a camp area in Cherokee Park, became a suspect [17]Verified Joseph Cambron's confession — WHAS11
Confirms Etheridge died of two stab wounds in chest and back.

During questioning, Cambron's denial lasted more than five hours before he confessed [18]Verified Mall video shows murder suspect with 12-year-old victim — WHAS11
Confirms surveillance video captured Cambron and Etheridge at Mid City Mall. Cambron admitted to engaging in a physical altercation with the boy, during which he stabbed the victim. The autopsy revealed two stab wounds — in his chest and back [19]Verified Joseph Cambron: 5 Fast Facts — Heavy.com
Confirms previous sexual abuse charges against a 6-year-old and acquittal in August 2014. Surveillance video from Mid City Mall had captured Cambron walking with Etheridge, just hours before his death [20]Verified Cambron sentenced to prison — WDRB
Confirms 13-year sentence for manslaughter and tampering with evidence.

The case also revealed that Cambron had previously stood trial on charges of sexual contact with a 6-year-old girl, though he was acquitted in August 2014 [21]Verified Kate Prout murder: Husband reveals Redmarley farm grave — BBC News
Confirms Adrian Prout admitted murder and led police to body at Redhill Farm. Because polygraph results are generally inadmissible in Kentucky courts, the test results could not be presented to the jury. Cambron ultimately pleaded guilty to manslaughter and tampering with evidence and was sentenced to 13 years in prison [22]Verified How a polygraph caught a killer, the Kate Prout case — Crime+Investigation UK
Confirms Kate Prout was 55 years old, vanished in 2007, and Adrian's fiancée arranged the polygraph.

Adrian Prout — The Polygraph That Backfired on the Killer

The case of Adrian Prout is one of the most dramatic examples of a lie detector test producing an immediate, unambiguous result. Kate Prout, a 55-year-old woman from Redmarley, Gloucestershire, vanished in November 2007 [23]Verified 4 crimes cracked by lie detector — Crime+Investigation UK
Confirms polygraph expert told Prout 'You're a murderer' and he later confessed. Her husband Adrian was convicted of her murder and sentenced to life in prison in February 2010 at Bristol Crown Court, despite her body never being found [24]Verified Adrian Prout shows police where murdered wife's body is buried — LCCSA
Confirms Debbie Garlick paid for polygraph test and confession followed four months later.

While in prison, Adrian's fiancée Debbie Garlick arranged and paid for a polygraph test, confident it would prove his innocence [25]Verified David Pietz sentenced to 18 years — Seattle Times
Confirms 18+ year sentence (220 months) for second-degree murder of Nicole Pietz. The move backfired spectacularly. Prout failed the test so badly that the polygraph expert said to him directly, "You're a murderer" [26]Verified David Pietz sentenced to nearly 20 years — FOX 13 Seattle
Confirms Nicole Pietz's naked body discovered in wooded area near Burien, strangled. A few months later, Prout confessed to the devastated Debbie that he had indeed murdered his wife [27]Verified David Pietz Found Guilty of Strangling Wife — ABC News
Confirms Pietz was 34 at conviction, Nicole vanished from Lynnwood home in 2006. He subsequently led police to where he had buried Kate's body at their former home, Redhill Farm [28]Verified 48 Hours: A mother finds justice — CBS News
Confirms judge found Pietz's spiking wife's drink with ecstasy 'absolutely abhorrent'.

This case underscores a phenomenon experienced polygraph examiners frequently observe: the psychological power of the test itself. Many suspects, when confronted with what they perceive as scientific proof of their deception, abandon their denials. Learn more about the history of polygraph examination and the psychological dynamics that make confessions more likely.

David Pietz — The Refused Second Test

In January 2006, Nicole Pietz, 32, was reported missing from her home near Lynnwood, Washington [29]Verified Murder of Annie Le — Wikipedia
Confirms Annie Le murder on September 8, 2009 at Yale, body found September 13, Clark sentenced to 44 years. Approximately one week later, her naked body was discovered in a wooded area near Burien. She had been strangled to death [30]Verified Annie Le's person of interest had scratches — ABC News
Confirms Clark failed a polygraph test when first brought in for questioning.

Her husband, David Pietz, became a person of interest. During the investigation, David Pietz failed a lie detector test. When investigators offered him the opportunity to take a second test, Pietz refused. However, Pietz was not arrested until more than six years later, on March 21, 2012, after King County prosecutors built a case they felt was strong enough to prosecute [31]Verified Police Say Yale Murder A Case Of Workplace Violence — NPR
Confirms FBI polygraph and behavioral analysis units assisted in the Annie Le case.

During the month-long trial, additional evidence painted a deeply troubling picture. Multiple women testified about romantic relationships with Pietz during his marriage to Nicole. Evidence also emerged that Pietz had spiked his wife's drink with ecstasy at a nightclub [32]Verified Annie Le murder: Raymond Clark sentenced to 44 years — Murderpedia
Confirms Clark pleaded guilty and received 44-year sentence on June 3, 2011. Judge Michael Hayden found this conduct "absolutely abhorrent" [33]Verified Susan Smith — Wikipedia
Confirms Susan Smith drowned sons in 1994, polygraph test administered two days after report, sentenced to life. David Pietz was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to just over 18 years in prison (220 months) [34]Verified The Investigation — Susan Smith — Crime Library
Confirms Susan's polygraph was inconclusive but showed deception on 'Do you know where your children are?'.

Raymond Clark III — Yale Campus Murder

On September 8, 2009, 24-year-old Annie Le, a doctoral student at the Yale School of Medicine, was murdered on the New Haven, Connecticut campus [35]Verified Revisiting Susan Smith case — ABC News
Confirms Smith confessed on November 3 after investigators confronted her about polygraph deception. Her body was found on September 13 — the day she was to be married — inside a cable chase in the basement of her research building [36]Verified Susan Smith: Killer Mom denied parole — Fox News
Confirms Smith retracted lie about kidnapping after failing polygraph and confessed to killing sons.

Raymond Clark III, a 24-year-old laboratory technician who worked in the same building, was identified as a person of interest. Law enforcement sources confirmed that Clark failed a polygraph test when he was first brought in for questioning [37]Verified Susan Smith denied parole 30 years later — WLOS
Confirms jury convicted Smith of two counts of murder, sentenced to life in prison in 1995. The FBI's polygraph and behavioral analysis units assisted in the case [38]Verified Jorelys Rivera polygraph video — Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Confirms GBI Agent Keith Sitton administered polygraph and Brunn made full confession after failing. Clark also had scratches on his body and DNA evidence linked him to the crime scene [39]Verified Ryan Brunn suicide after conviction — CNN
Confirms Brunn sentenced to life without parole, hanged himself two days later.

Clark was arrested on September 17, 2009. He pleaded guilty to murder and attempted sexual assault on March 17, 2011, and was sentenced to 44 years in prison [40]Verified Natalee Holloway: 20 years since disappearance — LiveNOW from FOX
Confirms plea deal required van der Sloot to take a polygraph test. The polygraph test served as a critical early indicator that helped investigators focus on the right suspect while they gathered the DNA and forensic evidence needed for prosecution.

Susan Smith — Exposing a Mother's Lies

In October 1994, Susan Smith reported to police in Union, South Carolina, that a Black man had carjacked her vehicle with her two sons — three-year-old Michael and 14-month-old Alexander — still in the back seat [41]Verified Joran van der Sloot confession — CBS News
Confirms van der Sloot's confession was verified with a polygraph test per Beth Holloway. For nine days, she made dramatic pleas on national television for their safe return.

Two days after the reported carjacking, Smith was subjected to a polygraph test administered by the FBI [42]Verified Van der Sloot polygraph 'highest level of confidence' — The Hill / AP
Confirms polygraph report had 'the highest level of confidence that he was telling the truth'. Her results were inconclusive, but she showed her greatest level of deception when asked the question: "Do you know where your children are?" [43]Verified Van der Sloot sentenced to 20 years — NBC News
Confirms 20-year sentence concurrent with Peru sentence for Stephany Flores murder. Smith was given multiple polygraph tests over the following days, and each time she displayed deception on critical questions [44]Verified Murder of Sherri Rasmussen — Wikipedia
Confirms Nels Rasmussen told police about Lazarus, DNA matched bite mark, Lazarus convicted. On November 3, 1994, investigators confronted Smith and she confessed to drowning her two sons by strapping them in their car seats and rolling her car into John D. Long Lake [45]Verified Dentist's family's troubles resurface — Tucson.com
Confirms Nels Rasmussen was a retired Tucson dentist.

Smith was convicted of two counts of murder in July 1995 and sentenced to life in prison [46]Verified Lazarus convicted of first-degree murder — ABC News
Confirms Lazarus sentenced to 27 years to life for Rasmussen murder. She was denied parole in November 2024 [47]Verified Polygraph industry source on Renee Walker case
Contains account of Renee Walker Manhattan murder, Matthew Johnson polygraph, and subsequent exoneration. The repeated polygraph examinations were instrumental in keeping investigative pressure on Smith and ultimately breaking through her false narrative.

Jorelys Rivera Murder Case — Polygraph Leads to Confession

In December 2011, seven-year-old Jorelys Rivera disappeared from a playground at the River Ridge apartment complex in Canton, Georgia, about 40 miles north of Atlanta [48]Verified Jeffrey Deskovic — Innocence Project
Confirms false confession after six hours and three polygraph sessions, exonerated after 16 years. Her body was found in a trash compactor three days later [49]Verified Jeffrey Mark Deskovic — National Registry of Exonerations
Confirms details of coercive polygraph examination and $41 million civil rights verdict.

Keith Sitton, a special agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, administered a polygraph test to 20-year-old maintenance worker Ryan Brunn [50]Verified 1st witness called in wrongful conviction lawsuit — News 12 Westchester
Confirms expert testified polygraph technique used on Deskovic was 'as accurate as flipping a coin'. Despite Brunn's denials, the polygraph showed significant deception regarding his involvement [51]Verified Heather Teague disappearance — The Charley Project
Confirms Teague abducted from Newburgh Beach August 26, 1995, Dill suicide, evidence found in vehicle. When confronted with the results, Brunn eventually confessed, describing in detail how he had lured the girl away using a roller skate, molested her, cut her throat, and disposed of her body [52]Verified Body exhumed in Heather Teague case — 14 News
Confirms Marty Dill killed himself days after Teague's disappearance, DNA exhumation in 2025.

Brunn pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. He hanged himself in his prison cell two days after sentencing [53]Verified A comprehensive meta-analysis of the comparison question polygraph test
Comprehensive meta-analysis of 138 CQT datasets finding significant accuracy and no publication bias. The case powerfully demonstrates how the polygraph functions as a psychological catalyst that can break through a suspect's denials.

Natalee Holloway Disappearance — Polygraph Verifies a Killer's Confession

Natalee Holloway, an 18-year-old from Alabama, disappeared during a high school graduation trip to Aruba on May 30, 2005 [54]Verified A Test of the ESS with Two-Question Field Cases
Validates ESS for two-question test formats with robust accuracy for shorter criminal examinations. Joran van der Sloot was identified as the prime suspect and arrested on June 9, 2005, but was released due to insufficient evidence.

For nearly two decades, the case remained officially unsolved. In 2023, as part of a plea deal for extortion and wire fraud charges, the agreement required van der Sloot to provide all the information he knew about Holloway's disappearance, allow her parents to hear his statement in real time, and take a polygraph test. Van der Sloot confessed to killing Holloway on an Aruban beach after she rebuffed his sexual advances. Beth Holloway, Natalee's mother, confirmed that van der Sloot's confession was verified with the polygraph test.

The attorney representing Natalee's father stated the polygraph report "had the highest level of confidence that he was telling the truth". Van der Sloot was sentenced to 20 years for extortion and wire fraud, to run concurrently with his 28-year sentence in Peru for the 2010 murder of Stephany Flores. This case represents one of the most high-profile recent uses of polygraph testing to verify a confession.

Sherri Rasmussen — Cold Case Breakthrough

On February 24, 1986, 29-year-old Sherri Rasmussen, a director of critical care nursing, was found brutally murdered in her Van Nuys, Los Angeles condominium. LAPD initially investigated the crime as a botched burglary.

Sherri's father, Nels Rasmussen — a dentist with a practice in Tucson — repeatedly urged investigators to examine Stephanie Lazarus, an LAPD officer who had been John Ruetten's former girlfriend and who had been harassing Sherri. Lead detective Lyle Mayer dismissed this, telling Nels "there's nothing there".

The case went cold for over two decades until DNA technology advanced. In 2009, cold-case detectives matched DNA from a bite mark on Sherri's arm to Stephanie Lazarus through a discreetly collected sample. Lazarus, who had risen to the rank of detective in the LAPD, was arrested and convicted of first-degree murder in 2012. She was sentenced to 27 years to life. While the polygraph did not directly solve this case, it stands as a powerful example of why all investigative leads — including those suggested by family members — must be pursued. For more on how the history of forensic investigation has evolved, see our article on August Vollmer's crime lab vision.

Luke Mitchell — A Convicted Killer Professes Innocence

In Scotland, Luke Mitchell was convicted of the murder of Jodi Jones on June 30, 2003. Sentenced to life in prison, Mitchell consistently maintained his innocence throughout his incarceration. Prison officials eventually allowed him to take a lie detector test, with the examination recorded for public release.

The examiner asked Mitchell two critical questions: "Did you stab Jodi on 30 June, 2003?" and "Were you present when Jodi was stabbed?" Mitchell answered "no" to both questions, and the polygraph examiner concluded that his responses indicated truthfulness. Despite passing the polygraph examination, Mitchell remained in prison. Scottish courts do not accept polygraph evidence, meaning the test results had no legal bearing on his conviction.

The Mitchell case raises important questions about the frustrating gap that sometimes exists between polygraph results and legal outcomes. Defense advocates have used Mitchell's passed test as part of a broader campaign to have his case reviewed. For those interested in claims of innocence, understanding what a No Deception Indicated (NDI) result means is essential.

Jeffrey Deskovic — A Teenager's False Confession

The case of Jeffrey Deskovic is one of the most well-documented examples of a polygraph examination contributing to a wrongful conviction. In November 1989, 15-year-old Angela Correa was found murdered in Peekskill, New York. Sixteen-year-old Deskovic, a classmate, became a suspect because he appeared overly distraught about her death and visited her wake three times.

Deskovic agreed to a polygraph examination, believing it would clear him. He was taken to a small room at a private polygraph company and subjected to three polygraph sessions over approximately six to seven hours, without a lawyer or parent present and without food. One of the detectives accused Deskovic of failing his polygraph and told him he had been convinced of the teenager's guilt for weeks. By the end of the interrogation, Deskovic was curled up in a fetal position, sobbing, and had made a false confession.

DNA testing at the time excluded Deskovic as the source of semen found at the crime scene, yet a jury convicted him in December 1990. He was sentenced to 15 years to life. In 2006, the Innocence Project took on his case, and advanced DNA testing matched the crime scene evidence to Steven Cunningham, a convicted murderer. Deskovic was exonerated after serving nearly 16 years in prison. A federal jury later awarded him $41.6 million in damages.

This case is a powerful reminder that polygraph examinations must always be conducted ethically and that results should never be the sole basis for prosecution. The quality of the examiner's technique was later described as "as accurate as flipping a coin". Understanding the limitations of polygraph technology is crucial for all stakeholders in the criminal justice system.

A Case That Remains Unsolved

On August 26, 1995, 23-year-old Heather Teague was sunbathing at Newburgh Beach in Henderson County, Kentucky, when a witness observed through a telescope from across the Ohio River a man approach her, grab her by the hair, and drag her into the woods at gunpoint.

Marvin Ray "Marty" Dill, a Henderson County resident, became the primary suspect. His Ford Bronco matched a vehicle seen near the beach, and authorities discovered items including two guns, duct tape, rope, and rubber gloves in his vehicle. Dill strongly resembled the composite sketch of Heather's abductor.

Critically, Dill killed himself before police could question him — just days after Teague's disappearance — when officers arrived at his home to serve a search warrant. His wife invoked her Fifth Amendment rights before a grand jury and refused to answer questions. Heather Teague has never been found, and her disappearance remains officially unsolved after 30 years. In August 2025, Kentucky State Police exhumed Dill's remains to collect DNA for comparison with evidence from the case.

This case illustrates both the potential and the limitations of criminal investigation — and the devastating impact when a suspect dies before investigators can fully deploy all available tools, including polygraph examination. For more on how polygraphs are used in missing person cases, see our dedicated guide.

What the Research Shows

The American Polygraph Association's 2011 meta-analysis — the most comprehensive review of polygraph accuracy to date — examined 38 studies involving 3,723 examinations [3]Verified Meta-Analytic Survey of Criterion Accuracy of Validated Polygraph Techniques
Confirms 89% accuracy for event-specific diagnostic polygraph testing and 87% overall across all validated techniques. Event-specific (single-issue) diagnostic testing produced a decision accuracy of 89%, while multiple-issue testing produced 85% accuracy. The overall decision accuracy across all validated techniques was 87% [3]Verified Meta-Analytic Survey of Criterion Accuracy of Validated Polygraph Techniques
Confirms 89% accuracy for event-specific diagnostic polygraph testing and 87% overall across all validated techniques.

Field validation studies using confirmed criminal case outcomes have achieved accuracy rates above 90% for both truthful and deceptive classifications [4]Verified Polygraph Field Test Accuracy of CQT in Criminal Cases
Confirms field validation accuracy rates above 90% for both truthful and deceptive classifications in criminal cases. A 2021 comprehensive meta-analysis of the Comparison Question Test by Honts and colleagues, analyzing 138 datasets, found significant accuracy and no publication bias. The research confirms that CQT tests can be accurate and that experimental study results are generalizable to real-world settings.

Validated scoring systems like the Empirical Scoring System (ESS) have been shown to maintain robust accuracy even with reduced question counts, supporting their utility for shorter examinations in criminal settings. Studies comparing mock-crime polygraph data with actual criminal investigation data have found that classification accuracy does not significantly differ between laboratory and field settings [5]Verified A Comparison of Polygraph Data from Mock Crimes and Actual Criminal Investigations
Confirms classification accuracy does not significantly differ between laboratory and field settings.

For law enforcement agencies seeking to maintain the highest standards, proper examiner training and adherence to validated techniques are essential. The Wickersham Commission's early advocacy for scientific policing methods laid the groundwork for the professional standards used today.