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Thomas v. State

The trial court did not err in admitting the results of the defendant's police-administered polygraph examination, as the defendant stipulated to the admissibility of the polygraph results.

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Montavius Thomas was tried by a Clayton County jury and found guilty on two counts of sexual battery of a child.1 He now appeals from the denial of his motion for a new trial, arguing that the trial court erred in admitting the results of his police-administered polygraph examination. We find no error and affirm.

The facts relevant to Thomas’s appeal are undisputed. The record shows that in September 2011 the Clayton County Police Department received a report that Thomas had molested D. P., a minor child, on one or more occasions. The case was assigned to Detective James Watson, who interviewed Thomas on November 10, 2011. On that date, Thomas voluntarily went to police headquarters to speak with Watson; during the interview, he denied all of the allegations that had been made against him. At the end of the interview, Watson asked Thomas whether he would be willing to take a polygraph exam if offered the opportunity. According to Watson, Thomas stated “emphatically” that he wanted to take a polygraph “and in fact expressed that he wanted to take it right then.” The polygraph exam, however, did not take place until almost two weeks later, on November 22, 2011. On that day, Watson picked Thomas up from his residence and drove him to police headquarters.2 Watson explained to Thomas that after they arrived at the police station, there would be forms for Thomas to review and sign, including a form explaining Thomas’s Miranda rights; that the entire process would take approximately three to four hours3 ; and that the exam would be conducted by an officer other than Watson.

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