Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Bulletin: Annie Dookhan. Governor orders "file-by-file" review of every case she handled. About 10,000 drug cases identified as potentially affected. AP.


STORY: (Boston);  "Gov. Patrick orders chemist's cases reviewed," by reporter Denise Lavoie, published by Associated Press on November 27, 2012.

GIST: Gov. Deval Patrick has ordered a “file-by-file review” of  every case handled by a Massachusetts chemist accused of faking test results at a now-closed government lab, as authorities continue to deal with the fallout from a scandal that threatens to unravel thousands of criminal cases. The chemist, Annie Dookhan, is accused of skirting protocols and manipulating drug samples at a former Department of Public Health drug lab where she worked for nine years. She has pleaded not guilty to charges in the case, but prosecutors said in a court motion Tuesday they expect she will be indicted. The scandal has already led to hundreds of legal challenges to criminal convictions in cases in which Dookhan tested drug samples. David Meier, a former state prosecutor appointed by the governor to identify cases Dookhan worked on, said Tuesday that Patrick has authorized a massive review of Dookhan’s cases, estimated to number about 34,000. “In order to do that, the governor has decided to devote whatever resources are necessary to do a file-by-file review of each of her cases,” Meier said. Speaking to reporters, Meier said his team has identified about 10,000 people whose drug cases were potentially affected by Dookhan’s alleged misconduct."

The entire story can be found at:

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2012/11/27/gov-patrick-orders-chemists-cases-reviewed/

PUBLISHER'S NOTE

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:

http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html

Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog.