A new wrinkle in proving rape.

Even judges were alarmed by the grand jury decision. The idea an accusation could be dismissed by a polygraph is not the usual practice.

The accuser should have had the opportunity to take a polygraph as well.

March 8, 2018

By Jayne O'Donnell

...The grand jury (click here) that declined to indict a former Cleveland Clinic surgeon accused of anal rape was given the results of a polygraph the doctor passed, which is so rare that it could justify releasing the proceeding's transcripts, according to Cuyahoga County Judge Michael Donnelly.

The Ohio Supreme Court adopted a new rule to promote transparency where transcripts can be obtained when the public's interest to know outweighs grand jury secrecy. Donnelly says he's never heard of polygraph evidence being introduced by a defendant in a grand jury proceeding in his 25 years in the legal profession.

Judges in this county, which includes Cleveland, preside over grand juries on a rotating basis. 

"The science behind polygraphs is suspect," says Donnelly. "That’s why it’s not admissible in court."

In very rare cases, parties will agree to allow such evidence at trial, but he says he has never heard of it being presented by a defendant in a grand jury proceeding, he says...