Module 5 - Polygraph Testing & Forensic Document Analysis

John and Patsy Ramsey outside their attorney's office in Atlanta during a break in their questioning by Boulder, Colorado authorities
Image from Canadian Press

The use of polygraph testing generated much controversy in the murder investigation of a young girl named JonBenet Ramsey.  The question at the heart of the controversy was  Should criminal suspects be able to chose who will give them a polygraph test?

The Murder and the Investigation

In Boulder, Colorado, USA, early on the morning of December 26, 1996, Patsy Ramsey called 911 to report her young daughter JonBenet missing and that they had found a handwritten ransom note demanding $118,000. Hours after Boulder police arrived and secured the house, John Ramsey found his daughter's lifeless body in the basement of their large mansion.  JonBenet had suffered blunt force trauma to the head and had been strangled. 

A lengthy investigation into JonBenet Ramsey' s murder failed to produce any credible suspects. Boulder Police officials said her parents were under suspicion.  In April and June, the Ramseys were both questioned by police.  Even JonBenet's 9-year-old brother, Burke, age 9, was interviewed for six hours. Police insisted they could not rule out Patsy as the writer of the ransom note.

Controversy Surrounding Polygraph Testing

To exonerate themselves, John and Patsy Ramsey offered to take polygraph tests to prove they had nothing to do with their daughter' s death.  The Boulder Police Department (PD) agreed as long as it was conducted by the FBI.  The Ramsey' s refused to take FBI polygraph tests saying that the FBI was involved with the case and as such would be biased.  The Ramseys then submitted a list of polygraphists to the Boulder PD that they wanted to conduct their polygraph tests. The Boulder Police rejected all the proposed polygraphists.

The determined and wealthy John and Patsy Ramsey then proposed that Edward Gelb, a polygraphist with 30 years experience and past president of the American Polygraph Association, could conduct their polygraph tests, but the Boulder Police continued to insist upon the FBI.

Then the American Polygraph Association became involved, announcing that they were willing to provide a polygraphist to administer polygraph tests similar to the FBI' s to the Ramseys. JonBenet' s parents agreed, but Boulder police rejected the offer.  The Ramseys then decided to reject the APA' s offer, preferring to pay Edward Gleib to give them their tests.

The Boulder Police Department' s continuous refusals to the Ramsey' s requests was based on a convincing argument.  The Boulder PD stated that only a law enforcement agency such as the FBI could give a reliable polygraph examination because only they have access to the thousands pieces of  undisclosed and sensitive evidence related to the case allowing only them to conduct a valid test.

The unwavering Ramseys hired Edward Gleib to give them each a polygraph test. Geilb' s findings cleared them both of any involvement in their daughter's death.  The Boulder Police rejected these results saying that they were willing to accept only valid polygraph findings from the FBI.  The Ramseys offered to allow the police to question Edward Gleib about his polygraph testing procedures, but the Boulder Police Department refused.

December 2006: Ten years since JonBenet Ramsey was brutally murdered and found dead in her own home, the Ramseys still refuse to take FBI polygraph tests while the Boulder Police Department still refuses to accept polygraph results from any other source. The case remains unsolved and is considered to be a "cold case because no new credible suspects or witnesses have surfaced.       

Did you know?

"Healthy disagreement and debate lead to reasonable compromise, and this is the only way to resolve anything of importance."

- Anonymous

Continue to the Lesson 1 Assignment.