Domestic abusers are to take regular lie detector tests when they leave prison to make sure they stay away from their ex-partner
- Thugs will be given a polygraph test to make sure they don’t try to contact victim
- Anyone who fails it or admits trying to see their ex could be put back behind bars
- Plans are part of Government’s flagship Domestic Abuse Bill to protect victims
Violent thugs who beat up their partners will face regular lie detector tests when they come out of prison.
They will be hooked to monitors and asked if they have tried to make contact with their victims, as one of the conditions of their release.
The Government will launch a three-month trial of the tests in two unnamed regions of England as part of a crackdown on domestic violence.
New monitoring of domestic abusers should help to offer better protection to their victims (file photo)
The polygraph tests will monitor offenders’ breathing, pulse rate and sweating to determine whether they are lying.
Anyone who fails or admits trying to see their former partner could be put back behind bars.
But lie detector tests are controversial and there are serious concerns over their accuracy.
In May, a contestant on ITV’s Jeremy Kyle show committed suicide after apparently failing such a test live on air.
Nonetheless, the Ministry of Justice has used the devices on sex offenders since 2014 – and at least 160 have been returned to prison as a result.
On average, two women are killed through domestic violence each week – with one in four being affected in their lifetime.
The detector test plans are part of the flagship Domestic Abuse Bill, which will receive its first reading in the Commons today.
Theresa May, who has championed the Bill, recognised the Government’s ‘duty’ to bring domestic abusers to justice.