The US will donate to the Internal Affairs and Complaints Service (CIA) polygraph equipment or “lie detectors”. The news was announced by the US Embassy in Tirana.
The donation agreement was signed on Tuesday by U.S. Director Muhamet Rrumbullaku and Director of International Drug Affairs and Law Enforcement Ben Rockwell, as well as Law Enforcement Assistant Ron Hendren.
In Albania, the polygraph was used after the justice reform during the process of recruiting investigators of the National Bureau of Investigation (BKH).
Initially, the law provided for police officers to undergo a polygraph test before taking office, but this was rejected by the Constitutional Court.
The Helsinki Committee has asked the Constitutional Court to remove the obligation for the polygraph test from admissions to the police and BKH. They say that this obligation violates human rights that are enshrined in the Constitution.
Furthermore, the accuracy of such tests has long been controversial, even being referred to as “pseudoscience“. There is limited evidence that there is any pattern of physiological reactions that are unique to deception. There are also a shortage of good studies that validate the ability of polygraphs to detect deception. Polygraph machines have since become inadmissible in court in evidence in a number of countries and states.
One of the main concerns is that someone who is nervous but telling the truth may give a false reading when compared to someone dishonest who isn’t anxious.
