"Alleged improprieties involving seized drugs
held in the New London Police Department's evidence room are affecting
dozens of cases in southeastern Connecticut. Several New London-area
defense attorneys report having received letters from the state
indicating evidence in a particular defendant's case may have been
compromised. They have been told to direct questions to the New London
State's Attorney's office. Some defense attorneys said clients'
drug charges are being dropped. In some instances where a defendant had
already entered a guilty plea, efforts are underway to reopen their
cases. Sections. Anthony Basilica, a New London defense
lawyer, has received letters from prosecutors in reference to about 10
of his clients. The letters say evidence has been compromised, according
to Basilica. He said cases have been put on hold while they are
reviewed. Basilica expects charges against defendants in cases where
evidence was compromised to be nolled, unless there is an underlying or
additional charge that wasn't drug-related..........State Police spokesman Tyler Weerden said the State Police Major Crime
Squad is investigating the circumstances at the request of the New
London State's Attorney's office. No charges have been filed. New
London Police Chief Margaret Ackley said MacDonald resigned from his
position after initially being put on administrative leave because of
the investigation. Ackley said MacDonald had been assigned to the
evidence room on a temporary basis........."I know [State Police] have
more interviews to do and need to get information from our officers on
what transpired," said Ackley, who noted she was out on leave when the
alleged problems were discovered. "I don't have a report yet on what
evidence is missing or was tampered with. When we have any issues, we
contact the State's Attorney's office, who said there needed to be an
outside investigation, and ordered that to happen. It is out of our
hands at this point." When asked about the scope and impact of any
evidence problems, Ackley said, "I don't know—it could be very minor or
massive. We hope the investigation is over soon, because we are all
waiting with bated breath for that answer.".........Supervisory
Assistant Public Defender Sean Kelly, who works in Superior Court in New
London, said his office has been working in conjunction with
prosecutors to help determine all the defendants who have been affected.
"This one officer has really created a scenario where public trust has
certainly been compromised," Kelly said. "As soon as the State's
Attorney's office found out about it, they brought it to our attention." To
date, 77 clients represented by his office or special public defenders
are known to be affected, though Kelly said more defendants could be
found through the police's investigation. The 77 cases include those
that are pending, those where defendants are in a diversionary program
and those where there has already been a conviction.........In many affected cases, the
defendants had already had their cases disposed of, such as by entering
guilty pleas. Kelly said a number of convicted clients have inquired
about their cases after hearing of the New London police situation.
These cases are being assigned to a post-conviction unit within the
Office of the Chief Public Defender for review, according to Kelly. One
potential avenue is reopening some individual cases due to new
information, he said. Attorney Sebastian DeSantis of New London
said he has received one letter from the state regarding a client. "They
are reviewing everything on a case-by-case basis," DeSantis said......... Todd
Fernow, director of the Criminal Law Clinic at the University of
Connecticut School of Law, said if a problem with evidence deprives the
state of its ability to prove a case beyond a reasonable doubt, he
wouldn't be surprised if cases get nolled or if defense attorneys move
to dismiss the charges. "If there is loss or destruction of evidence the state needs, it could be a big problem for the state," Fernow said.In
the cases where a defendant has pleaded guilty, Fernow said it may be
challenging to change it afterward. "Once you admit possession of a
drug, your admission can be held against you, but I can also see the
argument that a plea bargain was made based on the belief that evidence
existed," Fernow said. "
Wednesday, September 9, 2015
Bulletin: Hand (with a badge) in the cookie jar? The Connecticut Law Tribune reports that the discovery that of seized drugs stored in police evidence rooms had been tampered could affect dozens of prosecutions in Connecticut: Defense lawyers get letters about alleged mishandling of drugs by police;
