Liar, liar, pants on fire

The Poplar Bluff Museum tells many unknown tales of our community. I want to tell you some of those hidden tales found within the museum walls.

The first attempt at creating a lie detector was done in 1915 by a lawyer and psychologist named William Marston. It was very primitive in nature. The actual polygraph machine was perfected by John Larson in 1921. His machine recorded such indicators as blood pressure, pulse, respiration and skin conductivity. The belief was that when a person answered questions deceptively, the machine would record physiological responses associated with lying.

In 1994, Clare Clowe gifted the Poplar Bluff Police Department $5,000 to purchase a polygraph machine, bringing it into the 20th century of investigation technology. Along with the machine, this also paid for the accompanying support equipment and training required to run the program. Sergeant Greg Brainard was chosen be trained on the polygraph.

“Training was the key to the program” stated Brainard. “The machine is extremely accurate. It is the operator who can be unreliable.”

Apparently, Brainard was extremely well-trained and reliable. He was able to illicit hundreds of confessions of assaults, burglaries, abuse, shootings and even murders.

“They almost always confess when they see the results of the lie detector” said Brainard. “That’s when their pants caught on fire!”

The polygraph didn’t just catch the criminals, it also protected the innocent.

“Many suspects were cleared of charges by passing the polygraph,” according to Brainard.

The Poplar Bluff Police Department successfully used the polygraph machine for the next six years. They turned the program over to the Missouri State Highway Patrol in 2000. It is still a joint asset available to the PBPD on request. The famous polygraph machine was donated to the Poplar Bluff Museum by Police Chief Mike McLain. It is on display in the PBPD section of the First Responders exhibit.

The museum is open free of charge and handicap accessible. It is open 1-4 p.m. Sunday at 1010 N. Main St. Tell them Mike sent you!