Wondery Presents American Innovations: Lie Detector
Murder in Hollywoodland
English - February 25, 2021 09:00 - 8 minutes - 8.07 MBTrue Crime History exhibit c tracy pattin william desmond taylor james remar hollywood & crime true crime celebrity mystery noir investigation Homepage Download Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
On May 7, 1984, on a blustery day in Seattle, Gary Ridgway sat in an interrogation room. Strapped around his arm was a lie detector. After answering a series of questions, the investigators told him he was free to go. Gary would soon come to be known as one of the most prolific serial killers in United States history. But that day, he had beaten a lie detector test and walked out of the police station a free man.
When the lie detector first found its way into police stations it was touted to the press as 100% accurate. But soon the cracks begin to show. Those claiming innocence would fail the tests. And even as The Green River Killer proved he could best the machine its popularity continued to grow.
American Innovations: Lie Detector explores the evolution and validity of the Lie Detector. Listen at wondery.fm/liedetector