STORY: "Columbia police chief: Drug analyst resigns; nearly 200 cases may be in jeopardy," by reporter Harrison Cahill, published by the State on August 25, 2014. (Thanks to Justin J. McShane for drawing this important story to our attention on his excellent blog, "The truth about forensic science.")
GIST: "Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook said Monday that the department’s only drug analyst has resigned and that 188 criminal drug cases in which her tests were crucial evidence are now in jeopardy. The drug tests done by Brenda Frazier in those 188 cases will need to be reviewed by other agencies following an internal audit of the department’s drug analysis lab, Holbrook said at a news conference at police headquarters. Frazier submitted her resignation Monday, the chief said. Last week, Holbrook closed the department’s drug lab after a departmental review found Frazier wasn’t following standardized procedures required to make sure her drug testing results were accurate. Her determinations for both the weight of tested drugs, and what kind of drugs were being tested, are open to question, law enforcement officials have said. Frazier, who had been working at the lab since 2011, had done analyses in a total of 746 cases, Holbrook said, and she had testified in court numerous times. Midlands criminal defense lawyers, notified Friday of the drug lab problems, said they are glad Holbrook and 5th Circuit solicitor Dan Johnson are taking action to review Frazier’s cases. “This is serious – her job is important. Her drug tests can put people away for five, 10, 15 years,” said Jack Swerling, a Columbia defense lawyer who has handled numerous high profile drug and murder cases. He has taught at University of South Carolina Law School, held seminars and commented on national television. “The fact that she was involved in upwards of 1,000 cases is very significant, particularly for people who may have been convicted on the basis of faulty drug analyses,” Swerling said. “This is going to open up the door for people to challenge all her old cases, too.”.........Law officials don’t know how many wrongful convictions may have resulted from Frazier’s work, nor do they know if anyone was wrongly convicted and sent to prison. They say they are working to find out that information."
The entire story can be found at:
GIST: "Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook said Monday that the department’s only drug analyst has resigned and that 188 criminal drug cases in which her tests were crucial evidence are now in jeopardy. The drug tests done by Brenda Frazier in those 188 cases will need to be reviewed by other agencies following an internal audit of the department’s drug analysis lab, Holbrook said at a news conference at police headquarters. Frazier submitted her resignation Monday, the chief said. Last week, Holbrook closed the department’s drug lab after a departmental review found Frazier wasn’t following standardized procedures required to make sure her drug testing results were accurate. Her determinations for both the weight of tested drugs, and what kind of drugs were being tested, are open to question, law enforcement officials have said. Frazier, who had been working at the lab since 2011, had done analyses in a total of 746 cases, Holbrook said, and she had testified in court numerous times. Midlands criminal defense lawyers, notified Friday of the drug lab problems, said they are glad Holbrook and 5th Circuit solicitor Dan Johnson are taking action to review Frazier’s cases. “This is serious – her job is important. Her drug tests can put people away for five, 10, 15 years,” said Jack Swerling, a Columbia defense lawyer who has handled numerous high profile drug and murder cases. He has taught at University of South Carolina Law School, held seminars and commented on national television. “The fact that she was involved in upwards of 1,000 cases is very significant, particularly for people who may have been convicted on the basis of faulty drug analyses,” Swerling said. “This is going to open up the door for people to challenge all her old cases, too.”.........Law officials don’t know how many wrongful convictions may have resulted from Frazier’s work, nor do they know if anyone was wrongly convicted and sent to prison. They say they are working to find out that information."
The entire story can be found at:
http://www.thestate.com/2014/08/25/3639732/columbia-police-chief-drug-analyst.html
PUBLISHER'S NOTE:
Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
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/
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
I look forward to hearing from readers at:
hlevy15@gmail.com.
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;
