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New lie detector unleashed
The Ministry of Public Security will allow the use of a new form of lie detector to help nail down corrupt officials, according to China Daily.
The ministry tested the PG7 multiple variable lie detector last month and approved it for use in court investigations, the Henan based Dahe Daily reported.
The lie detector was developed over 10 years by the Scientific Information Institute of the Ministry of Finance and the Academy of Natural Science. It will monitor the suspect's blood pressure, pulse, breath, pupil movement and brain waves.
Many justice departments have shown interest, as well the Government's anti-graft bureaus. The device is likely to be used for corruption trials and business disputes where evidence is often inadequate.
A prosecutor quoted in the report said officials on corruption charges often held important positions and could use their power to hide or distort evidence.
More than 10 anti-corruption bureaus had used earlier versions of the lie detector to help determine if a corruption charge was valid, the paper said.
The first mainland-made lie detector was introduced in 1991 and since then has been used in more than 2,000 cases, according to the newspaper.
The use of the lie detector is not without controversy. A recent case found that a mainland police officer was sentenced to death and spent more than two years in prison for a crime he did not commit. He failed his lie-detector test.
Professor Liu Chengxun, of the Academy of Natural Science, said it was important not to wrong an innocent person. "If you let one criminal go, you just make one mistakeŁ» but if you sentence a good person, you make two mistakes - you set the criminal free and you have wronged an innocent person."
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