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tl;dr: polygraphs aren't reliable and can be misused?

It's not that they're unreliable, they simply don't work in the first place.

The misuse is that they're used at all.

It’s a prop to conduct an adversarial interrogation without the same stigma.

And they are performed interrogation style but cannot be refused without risking your career.

OTOH, someone arrested can (probably should?) refuse.