Povstіanyi O. The application of a polygraph in the detection and investigation of criminal offences

The thesis is devoted to a comprehensive study of the peculiarities of polygraph use in the detection and investigation of criminal offences. The author reveals the genesis of polygraph use in the activities of law enforcement agencies, and as a result, offers the author's vision of the content of the modern period of polygraph use in the activities of law enforcement agencies of Ukraine, as well as the use of the obtained results in criminal procedural activities. The author defines the essence of a polygraph as a system of hardware and software tools for processing physiological data of an interviewee. The author analyses the theoretical concepts which explain the regularities of a person's physiological processes during a polygraph examination, and emphasises that the main feature of the results of a polygraph examination is their oriented nature. The author characterises the foreign experience of using a polygraph in law enforcement activities, and on the basis of this study, three main approaches to determining the legal regime of using a polygraph in detecting and investigating criminal offences, as well as further proof in court proceedings are identified. Based on the study of foreign countries' experience, the author systematises the list of conditions for using a polygraph in criminal proceedings, including: obtaining a written consent of the person being interviewed to use a polygraph; use of certified devices only; conducting a survey and interpreting its results only by a qualified specialist / expert who has undergone appropriate training and has the appropriate admission to the profession The author outlines the status of regulatory and legal regulation of polygraph use in detecting signs of criminal offences. The author supports the possibility of providing for the use of a polygraph in detecting criminal offences at the level of law, while observing the principle of voluntariness in its use. It is noted that the general organisational requirements for polygraph examination, the procedure for preparing, conducting and using the results of the examination and other organisational aspects should be regulated at the level of interagency instructions. The author highlights the organisational basis for the use of a polygraph in detecting signs of criminal offences, which are proposed to be considered at the narrow (tactical) and broad (strategic) levels. The author reveals the peculiarities of polygraph examination at the stage of detecting signs of a criminal offence, in particular, its intelligence orientation to identify and verify criminogenic persons and objects for the prevention and detection of criminal offences, and also the distinctive features of the exclusively voluntary, and therefore public, nature of its conduct, which differs from the covert nature of most techniques and methods used in the fight against offences and crime in the course of operational and investigative activities. The author characterises the principles of polygraph use in criminal proceedings. It is noted that since the results of polygraph examination may be a valid source of information only if the constitutional guarantees of a person are observed, the author's vision of the system of principles of polygraph examination in criminal proceedings is proposed: legality; inviolability of the person, respect for his/her honour and dignity; voluntary consent of the person being interviewed (it is proposed to supplement the provisions of Article 223 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine); independence of a polygraph examiner; impartiality of a polygraph examiner.