Student Monk’s Lie Detector Results Likely Not Admissible
A monastic student who is charged with killing a nun recently passed a lie detector test about his allegations of sexual abuse at Holy Cross Academy – but the results will likely never be admitted as evidence.
Florida law – as in most states – bars the admissibility of a polygraph test in trials, unless both sides agree. And many legal experts consider such tests ”junk science.”
”There are many people who think that anyone can beat a lie detector with the proper coaching,” said University of Miami law professor Terence Anderson.
”There also is an underlying policy not in the law – a commitment to the jury system. We are reluctant to let machines substitute for that.”
The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office declined to say whether prosecutors will block the polygraph results of Mykhaylo Kofel, a Holy Cross student monk charged with murdering a nun on the West Kendall campus. Spokesman Ed Griffith said the results might detract attention from the heinous crime that was committed on March 25.
Kofel, 18, who came from the Ukraine for monastic training at Holy Cross, is charged with stabbing Sister Michelle Lewis 93 times with a steak knife and striking her repeatedly with a fire poker as she screamed for help. He could face the death penalty if convicted.
In his confession, Kofel also alleged that two Holy Cross religious leaders, Father Abbot Gregory Wendt and Father Damian Gibault, had molested him over the past four years. Both men have denied the allegations through their attorneys.
Kofel was polygraphed on April 18 at the behest of his attorney, Assistant Public Defender Edith Georgi. He was only asked about the sex abuse allegations, not the murder.
‘Did Not Lie’
According to the report by veteran polygraph examiner Warren Holmes, Kofel ”did not lie” when he said Gibault sexually abused him 15 times.
Kofel was also found to be truthful when he said Wendt fondled his penis outside his clothing on four separate occasions, Holmes said.
”He said these acts created anger and despondency to a point where he considered and attempted suicide several weeks prior to his arrest,” Holmes said.
But Miami-Dade’s top police official questioned why Kofel wasn’t asked about the killing.
”The polygraph, as far as we’re concerned, is a nonissue,” Miami-Dade Police Director Carlos Alvarez said Thursday. ”We found the subject that night, he gave a full confession and he was accordingly arrested. He confessed to the killing.”
Some legal experts suggested that Georgi released the polygraph results in an attempt to portray Kofel more sympathetically as a victim of sexual abuse. They also said she may be trying to influence the legal strategy of prosecutors, who have not said whether they will seek the death penalty.
Plea Deal
”Quite frankly, if this can help get the state to offer a plea not involving the death penalty, then she has won,” said prominent criminal defense attorney Richard Sharpstein.
Georgi said the release of the polygraph results might provide ”mitigation” for her client, but added:
”By releasing the polygraph, we may in fact encourage witnesses who have corroborating evidence to come forward.”
Whatever Georgi’s reasons were, some legal experts suggested she has run afoul of Florida Bar Rule 4-3.6. It prohibits lawyers from releasing information before trial because it might influence a jury.
”It’s highly unethical,” said Nova Southeastern University legal ethicist Robert Jarvis. But he added it’s not uncommon among defense attorneys trying to be ”zealous advocates” for their clients.
University of Miami criminal law professor Bruce Winick said that while Georgi’s release of the polygraph is ”inappropriate,” it will likely make little difference for her client.
”When people read in the newspaper that he confessed, then it’s over,” Winick said.
Georgi strongly denied she violated the Bar rule on pretrial publicity. ”Absolutely not,” she said, adding that the trial is months away.
Herald staff writer Manny Garcia contributed to this report.