Last updated on November 26, 2021
By Jeffrey Augustine
UPDATE: According to an article published in the NY Daily News, Jonathan Kyle Carter, 29, of Uniondale, NY, a police officer with the NYPD filed a complaint filed with United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), claiming that the MTA (Metropolitan Transit Authority) uses polygraph tests to “suppress the hiring of African American (Black) police officer candidates.”
After the story was published by the Daily News, the MTA canceled all remaining polygraph examinations for new applicants, scheduled to be given by Dan Ribacoff’s company InDepth Polygraphs through early 2022, when his contract with the agency expires.
BLACK NYPD OFFICER JONATHAN CARTER APPLIES TO MTA; IS REQUIRED BY MTA TO TAKE POLYGRAPH EXAMINATION
Carter sought a job transfer to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Police in 2020. The MTA is responsible for policing New York City’s extensive transportation network. Carter, a black police officer, was told by the MTA that it would hire him, subject to MTA examination requirements which include pre-employment background, fitness, medical exams and a polygraph examination.
Carter passed similar exams when he joined the NYPD, so he didn’t expect the outcome to be any different for the MTA. Since the MTA pays police officers $100,000+ overtime per year, after seven years of service, and includes an extensive benefits package, Carter was interested in the position. The MTA told Carter he had the job, conditioned upon his passing the exams. However, things began to change after Carter sat for his polygraph examination.
As reported by Newsday, Carter told the polygraph examiner (Lisa Ribacoff, Manager of InDepth Polygraphs) that he had been diagnosed with “White Coat Syndrome,” a condition which causes nervousness during clinical situations. “My heart and my blood pressure goes up, so usually when I take any kind of medical exam I usually fail the initial one,” said Carter. Upon hearing this, Ribacoff became hostile toward Carter, telling him it wasn’t a real medical condition, according to Carter’s account.
The US National Institutes of Health has published studies on this condition as has Harvard, the Cleveland Clinic, and numerous other medical institutions. It’s common to experience increased blood pressure and heart rate in the presence of a doctor, authority figure, or during a job interview. Even the legal profession recognizes “White Coat Syndrome” as it relates to polygraph examinations.
DAN RIBACOFF, FROM STEVE WILKOS SHOW, OWNS POLYGRAPH COMPANY MTA USES TO SCREEN APPLICANTS
Dan Ribacoff who appears regularly as the polygraph expert on NBCUniversal’s the Steve Wilkos show, is also the founder and owner of International Investigative Group (IIGPI) and InDepth Polygraphs of New York. According to a YouTube interview with Dan Ribacoff, his company InDepth Polygraphs has a contract with the MTA to administer polygraph examinations for new job applicants. The examiner who allegedly administered Carter’s polygraph examination, Lisa Ribacoff, is also the daughter of Dan Ribacoff. According to Carter, it was Lisa Ribacoff who told him that “White Coat Syndrome” is not a real medical condition. Carter’s attorney, Peter Crusco, revealed to us that Dan Ribacoff himself confirmed Carter’s polygraph results.
CARTER IS REJECTED BY MTA AFTER FAILING POLYGRAPH ADMINISTERED BY LISA RIBACOFF AND VERIFIED BY DAN RIBACOFF; FILES RACIAL DISCRIMINATION COMPLAINT AGAINST MTA AS A RESULT
The MTA eventually informed Carter that he had failed the polygraph exam and would not be eligible for the job. Upon learning this, Carter’s attorney, Peter Crusco, filed a complaint with the EEOC, alleging discrimination based upon race and disability. Crusco further alleged that the MTA uses polygraph examinations “as a means to eliminate black applicants.” As stated in Carter’s EEOC complaint:“This racially motivated invidious discrimination is done to facilitate a covert policy and procedure by MTA that denies black candidates equal opportunity, among other reasons, in favor of white applicants with family already employed by the MTA, that is nepotism, at the expense of the constitutional rights of black candidates.”
The New York MTA is no stranger to racial discrimination lawsuits. According to the Daily News, in 2015 the MTA quietly paid $1.2 million to settle a lawsuit “brought by a group of Black and Hispanic transit cops who accused the agency of condoning and encouraging racial discrimination.” The Plaintiffs, all current and former officers, alleged that they were regularly subjected to racial slurs, skipped over for promotions, and blocked from overtime assignments. The suit alleged that 96% of the MTA PD’s captains and supervisors are white.
DISCOVERY OF RACIST TEXT MESSAGES ALLEGEDLY SENT BY DAN RIBACOFF TO PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR; RIBACOFF DID NOT DENY SENDING THE MESSAGES
Since the filing of Carter’s EEOC complaint, new evidence has come to light which appears to support his allegations: Racist text messages allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff to a private investigator.
The web site antipolygraph.org has recently acquired highly offensive and blatantly racist text messages, allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff, owner of IIGPI and InDepth Polygraphs and Lisa Ribacoff’s boss and father. Carter’s attorney Peter Crusco provided us with the following statement:
“My first reaction as I read the texts was disbelief. How could the owner of a private Investigation firm, like Dan Ribacoff, who has a contract with the MTA to polygraph new applicants, allegedly be involved in sending such text messages that are so obviously degrading and disparaging to Black people? Then as I read them slowly and individually again, I realized their real impact: that anyone who has this alleged mindset, this biased and degrading view of Black people, would never give a person of color – such as my client Jonathan Kyle Carter – a fair shot at a job and fairly review his polygraph results. And I knew then this was the smoking gun.”
*** CAUTION: OFFENSIVE MATERIAL FOLLOWS***
In this text message allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff on June 16, 2017 at 1:29 PM EDT is an image containing the following headline: “When your GPS says “turn right onto Martin Luther King Blvd.” Below the headline are three other images with white hands locking car doors, closing car windows, and loading a revolver.
In this text message allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff on February 18, 2018 at 12:46 PM EST is an image of a Monopoly board with the words “BLACK MONOPOLY” in the center. Except for one square with the words “Jail”, every other square on the board contains the words “Go to Jail.”
In this text message allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff on September 15, 2017 at 12:18 PM EDT is an image containing the following headline: “You’ve heard of Elf on the Shelf, now get ready for.” Below the headline is an image of the Disney version of the Winnie-the-Pooh character “Tigger” positioned on top of the head of a young black boy, which apparently is meant to rhyme with the headline.
In this text message allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff on February 7, 2018 at 8:26 PM EST is an image containing the following headline: “When you’ve got $9.34 left in your bank account and you have to start practicing being homeless.” Below the headline is an image of a black male adult sitting inside a cardboard box.
In this text message allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff on June 24, 2017 at 9:48 AM EDT is an image containing the following headline: “When you can’t carry a gun because of a felony…but you found a loophole.” Below the headline is an image of a black man carrying a white man on his chest.
Here’s what we know so far:
- Ribacoff’s firm IIGPI/InDepth Polygraphs has a contract with the MTA to conduct polygraph examinations of new applicants
- A former black applicant of the MTA, who was rejected due to a polygraph examination administered by Lisa Ribacoff and verified by Dan Ribacoff, has filed a racial discrimination complaint with the EEOC against the MTA
- Ribacoff conducts polygraph examinations of guests who appear on NBCUniversal’s “The Steve Wilkos Show,” many of whom are Black
- Numerous highly offensive and blatantly racist text messages have been discovered which were allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff, owner of IIGPI/InDepth Polygraphs, the father and boss of Lisa Ribacoff
- Ribacoff’s attorney responded to antipolygraph.org’s request for comment and did not deny that his client, Dan Ribacoff, sent the racist text messages in question to a private investigator
The discovery of these racist text messages is a deeply disturbing and serious matter with wide ranging implications. We’ve reached out to producers at NBCUniversal Media and The Steve Wilkos Show for comment, and officials at the New York MTA regarding the racist text messages allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff of IIGPI and InDepth Polygraphs, none have yet to respond to our requests.
In addition to the discovery of the racist text messages, Ribacoff’s company, International Investigative Group (IIGPI) has been accused of defrauding clients out of millions, as well as aiding and abetting the sexual assaults and rapes of a female subject during one of their private investigations. The Ribacoff’s, their firm IIGPI, and several of their dirty PI’s have been sued for millions of dollars in New York Nassau County Supreme Court.
IS DAN RIBACOFF MTA’S “GATEKEEPER”? RACIST TEXT MESSAGES INDICATE A RACIAL BIAS AGAINST BLACK POLYGRAPH APPLICANTS
Attorney Peter Crusco has confirmed to DCPI that the racist text messages, allegedly sent by Dan Ribacoff, have been authenticated and were included as part of his complaint filed with the EEOC, on behalf of Jonathan Carter, against the MTA.
Given the sinister nature of the recently discovered racist text messages, which implies inherent racial bias, Ribacoff’s position as the polygraph examiner on a nationally televised talk show, as well as his firm’s contract with the MTA to polygraph new applicants, the long-term impact to a Black or minority subject of a polygraph examination could be disastrous. The seriousness of this discovery is obvious and must prompt immediate action by state and federal authorities, NBCUniversal, and the New York MTA. We will be monitoring this breaking story and will report the moment new information becomes available.
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