The truth is, the lie detector is still effective BY CHRIS GAETANO Staff Writer CHRIS GAETANO Cagnie Antczak, 11, OF Kendall Park, is hooked up to a polygraph machine by State Police polygraph specialist Laurent Gauthier during the South Brunswick Police Department's Youth Police Academy demonstration recently. SOUTH BRUNSWICK - Lies have been around since the dawn of humanity and will be until its end. This does not mean, however, that all lies will pass without consequence, as the methods for detecting them grow more sophisticated with each generation. South Brunswick students got a firsthand demonstration of one such method, the polygraph test, as part of the Police Department's Youth Police Academy program Tuesday. Detective Sgt. Laurent Gauthier, with the New Jersey State Police Polygraph Unit, came to the township to talk to about two dozen youths ages 10 and 11 about lie detectors - how they work, what they do and why they're used. "When we pick someone up and ask someone, 'Did you do this crime?,' what do you think they'll say?" Gauthier asked rhetorically. The demonstration was part of a series of one-week programs where South Brunswick youths spent time learning about police officers and their work. While they observe demonstrations on things like first aid, the Emergency Response Team and traffic safety, they also get to know the local officers. The program is in its 10th year. Officer Gene Rickle said that as the kids get to know the police in the area, it is hoped that they will develop personal connections to the local department and develop good citizenship. "I really like to connect with the kids and give them some sense of what police officers do. We don't want them to be afraid of us, [we want them to] respect us and to help us and, when we're out there, these guys now have some personal connection to the police department and they're not afraid to answer our questions," Rickle said. "They feel comfortable talking to us, and that can help us not only in investigations but also in preventing crimes." Chief Raymond Hayducka also stressed the program's value to community policing efforts. "The youth academy has always been one of my favorite programs. We get an opportunity to interact with our young people in a positive way. The program shows what it is really like behind the scenes and forms lasting relationship with our young people," said Hayducka. Gauthier began his presentation by talking about the history of lie detection, saying that as long as people have been lying, other people have been trying to figure out how to get to the truth. He said that for centuries people used torture to try and do this, though from a law enforcement perspective, he said it was not a good idea, because torture can produce false confessions that lead investigators on the wrong path. "Our job is to get the real criminals. ... We have to get the right person," Gauthier said, noting that a polygraph test is "a scientific way." Polygraphs, which have been around since the 19th century, record physiological responses, such as changes in heartbeat, increased sweat production or spikes in blood pressure, to detect whether someone is lying. Gauthier said that they are between 95 and 98 percent accurate, depending on which study is used. While most people might think that polygraphs are used to find the guilty, he said that they are more frequently used to clear the innocent. "Sometimes, this is the only way you can clear yourself," Gauthier said. "If you didn't do it, we would like you to take a polygraph so we can … not waste time, and move on." Gauthier, who needed to take a three-month training session in Canada to become proficient in polygraph tests, said that between 75 and 80 percent of people typically tend to tell the truth, adding further weight to the idea that polygraphs can help clear the innocent. "Most people are good people. Generally, we go through our day without breaking the law, or our society would be in chaos," Gauthier said. The few people who are trying to evade the law, he said, will have a more difficult time. Despite many attempts to do so, he said he knew of only one way that someone would be able to beat a polygraph test: with a sledgehammer. "And then you're guilty for destroying government property," Gauthier said. He concluded his talk by demonstrating the polygraph test on a volunteer from the audience, Cagnie Antczak, 11, of Kendall Park. She was shown several cards with numbers on them and was instructed to choose one. She was then fitted with a "cardio-cuff" around her arm to measure blood pressure, pneumographic tubes to measure breath, a plethysmograph to measure blood flow in the fingers, and a pair of small cups on the fingers to measure sweat. Once all this was set up, Antczak was instructed to answer "no" to each question. Gauthier then went through each of the cards and asked whether that was the number she chose. When he asked whether she chose 10, her heart rate went up and then down when she answered "no." "If I were a betting man," said Gauthier, "I'd say you picked 10." He was correct. Antczak said she tried to not move around and see if that made a difference, but despite her efforts, she had been found out. "It was interesting to see that the computer could actually pick up the heart rate," said Antczak. Antczak, as well as others, felt positive about the presentation. "I thought it was really cool," said Dominick Boccio, 11, of Dayton.