QUOTES OF THE DAY: "The ACLU says the Farak case is worse than the Dookhan case because of the prosecutorial misconduct. The organization wrote in its court brief that the Farak case "represents a complete collapse of the criminal justice system." "It cannot be blamed on a sole 'bad apple,' because Farak's conduct was just the beginning," attorneys for the ACLU wrote. "Farak's misconduct was compounded by the (attorney general's office's) discovery violations because Assistant Attorney Generals intentionally suppressed evidence about Farak's drug abuse and deliberately deceived the Superior Court and defense lawyers." "Every single case affected by Sonja Farak and the Amherst lab scandal should be dismissed -- and prosecutors should be held accountable for identifying and notifying defendants with potentially tainted convictions, both in this scandal and others," said David Hoose, president of Hampden County Lawyers for Justice, in a statement."
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"The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts is asking the state's highest court to dismiss all cases tainted by the misconduct of former state drug lab chemist Sonja Farak. "Doing right by the victims of the drug lab scandal is critical to restoring the integrity of the criminal justice system and an important step toward addressing the criminalization of substance abuse," said Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts, in a statement. Farak was arrested in 2013 for stealing samples from the Amherst drug lab to feed her own addiction. She later pleaded guilty to evidence tampering and drug charges. The fallout from her case is ongoing. The ACLU's request to the Supreme Judicial Court comes after an SJC ruling in a separate case involving Hinton Drug Lab chemist Annie Dookhan, who pleaded guilty in 2013 to falsifying the results of drug tests. In that case, the Supreme Judicial Court did not allow for all cases touched by Dookhan to be automatically dismissed. But the court said prosecutors must review all 24,000 cases and determine which ones could be prosecuted again. Ultimately, 21,500 cases were dismissed due to the scandal. The ACLU, joined by the Committee for Public Counsel Services, Hampden County Lawyers for Justice and others, is now arguing that every case involving Farak should be dismissed. They argue, in a court motion, that because the attorney general's office did not disclose information relevant to the case about Farak's mental health history, that misconduct warrants the dismissal of all related cases. There are thousands of cases potentially affected. A Hampden Superior Court judge ruled in June that the "intentional and deceptive actions" of two assistant attorneys general "ensured that justice would certainly be delayed, if not outright denied, and in the process, they violated their oaths as assistant attorneys general and officers of the court." The ACLU says the Farak case is worse than the Dookhan case because of the prosecutorial misconduct. The organization wrote in its court brief that the Farak case "represents a complete collapse of the criminal justice system." "It cannot be blamed on a sole 'bad apple,' because Farak's conduct was just the beginning," attorneys for the ACLU wrote. "Farak's misconduct was compounded by the (attorney general's office's) discovery violations because Assistant Attorney Generals intentionally suppressed evidence about Farak's drug abuse and deliberately deceived the Superior Court and defense lawyers." "Every single case affected by Sonja Farak and the Amherst lab scandal should be dismissed -- and prosecutors should be held accountable for identifying and notifying defendants with potentially tainted convictions, both in this scandal and others," said David Hoose, president of Hampden County Lawyers for Justice, in a statement."
http://www.masslive.com/politics/index.ssf/2017/09/aclu_asks_for_dismissal_of_all.html
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. 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/c
