Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-08-03

Continued From First Page)
Of DR.. Wilmer Souder that Campbelrs
gun fired the fatal bullets, has sug-
gested to oficials here that suspects In
the Campbell case be subjected to the
so-called Gle detector."
In o letter to Cloth the Chicago
criminologist spoke very highly Of the
curious device and offered the services
of its sponsor, Leonardo Keeler, who Is
associated with Goddard on the tech
nical staff of the scientific crime detec-
ton laboratory Of Northwestern UNI
versity.
Gloth will turn the letter over to the
District attorneys ONCE tomorrow,
when authority in the case is due to
change hands. Assistant United States
Attorney Collins, on learning of God
dard's letter last night, expressed the
opinion that the lie detector plan would
not be feasible here In view of a de-
cision by Associate Justice Van Orsdel
in 1923 that such devices were not ad-
MISSILE In court.
The courts decision was rendered In
the case of James Alphon3o Frye, con-
victed of second-d degree murder for the
shooting of Robert w. Brown in 1920.
In that case 1t was proposed that DR..
William M. Marston use the deception
tester" on Frye, but the court said:
Just when a scientific principle or
experimental and demonstrable stages
is dificult to define. Somewhere In this
twilight zone the evidential force of the
principle must be recognized, and while
courts will 60 long way In admitting
testimony deduced from q well recog-
nized scientific principle or discovery
the thing from which the deduction is
made must be sufficiently established to
have gained general acceptance in the
particular field in which 1t belongs.
I'VE think the syStolic blood pressure
gained such standing and scientific
recognition among physiological and
authorities as would justify
the court in admitting expert testimony
deduced from the discovery, develop
ment and experiments thus far made"
Since that decision was made, how
ever. the lie detector as demonstrated by
Keller has been given much favorable
publicity, and has been Endorsed not
only by Col. Goddard, but by many
other criminologjsts, including August
Vollmer, special police adviser to the
Hoover Law Enforcement Commission.
Vollmer, as chief Of police Of Berkeley,
Calf, made frequent use of the device
and declares 1t never made a mistake"
Col. Goddard has accepted Keller as
a laboratory consultant and the lie de-
tector has been installed as part of the
university's ime-detection equipment.
Goddard, in conversation with stan
correspondent of The Star in Chicago
the past week, remarked that the Baker
case was IAN ideal one" for major
demonstration of the machine, and Of
fered to cooperate with the authorities
In making Use Of It.
Keeler explained at the time that
most directors to use of the apparatus
were unfamiliar with its operation and
with its record of infallibility, basing
their opinions wholly on conjecture.
Those who have experimental In
the laboratory and police departments
are convinced the deception tests as
now used are of value in ascertainine
the guilt or innocence of an individual,
and that the possibilities of developing
such tests to a most practical basis are
great" Keeler asserted.
Keeler's lie detector measures varia-
lions in blood pressure and respiration
and It's value is predicated on the
knowledge that persons engaged in de-
ception react abnormally with regard to
blood pressure and breathing.