Sheriff's computer is a truth detector

By Janine Anderson

Friday, February 10, 2006 2:09 AM CST

RACINE - Two Racine County Sheriff's Department employees couldn't pinpoint the lie I told when they tested me with the Computer Voice Stress Analyzer, but it wasn't because it looked like I was telling the truth.

Instead, it looked like I lied five times.

The CVSA measures inaudible vibrations in the voice that lessen when a person is under stress, as when they lie during a police investigation. These vibrations are unchanged when people have no stress associated with the lie they are telling.

We set up a test Wednesday for me to put the machine through its paces. I made a bet that hinged on my performance, to make sure there would be some stress associated with the lie I told. If they couldn't tell when I was lying I got to buy some lovely Japanese yarn for a knitting project; if they caught me, I had to spend a night at home while my husband went out with friends.

The lie was pretty low-key: I had to lie about which of five numbers I had chosen. My test results made it look like I was under stress each time I was asked about numbers, regardless of whether it was the number I chose. There was no stress associated with truthful answer to questions like "Are you sitting down?" and "Are we in the city of Racine?" Most people who take the test end up lying about much more weighty matters, like "Did you take the ring?" or "Did you break down the door?" When people get caught in a lie, the Sheriff's Department can use that

information to help their investigation, but not to convict them. CVSA results are inadmissible in court.

Investigator Christopher Schmaling and Sgt. Dan Klatt looked at my results. They said they have never seen that happen before, though it is not unusual to get strange results under artificial conditions.

Schmaling is the department's primary CVSA user, bringing the laptop computer and microphone out about 20 times a month.

"It's not about seeing if someone is lying," he said. "It works to tell if they're telling the truth."

The CVSA is just one of the tools the department can use when it is tracking down suspects in a crime, and it's often the last tool they use.

"You get evidence going in the Crime Lab first, and when all else is exhausted, we use this," Schmaling said.

Lt. John Hanrahan, another department employee who is trained in the use of CVSA, said: "It's not the end-all and the catch-all, but it's another tool in the arsenal that can confirm we're going in the right direction."

Here are a few situations where the department has used the CVSA: * A teenager accused her father of sexual assault. The father asked to take a lie detector test. There was no physical evidence and the allegation was that the inappropriate touching had gone on for years. He passed the test, and the girl admitted she had lied about the abuse.

* Investigating an escape attempt at Southern Oaks Girls School.

* Questioning a young man who was suspected of burglarizing his parents' home. He was caught lying about the burglary

and confessed.

* Helping to eliminate suspects in an employee theft case at a medical facility.

* Trying to determine if a man burglarized a Union Grove home. He had a criminal record and knew the victims, but consistently told investigators he did not commit the crime. He passed the CVSA. Physical evidence linked another person to the crime.

Just for kicks, Schmaling found audio of President Bill Clinton's Jan. 26, 1998 news conference where he said: "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky." Schmaling broke the recording into pieces and ran the words through the CVSA.

"It showed he was lying," Schmaling said. "He was honest when he was giving his name."

Schmaling said the CVSA is 98.7 percent accurate, and that it is one of the last things used in an investigation.

"I try not to give the test," he said. "I always explain that it is 98.7 percent accurate and tell them they will not pass if they were involved.

"It's not a crystal ball into someone's head, but it's the closest thing we've got."

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