More charges for Mass. chemist in drug lab scandal

More charges for Mass. chemist in drug lab scandal

www.google.com

A Massachusetts chemist accused of deliberately faking test results on drug samples in criminal cases was indicted Monday on 27 charges, state Attorney General Martha Coakley said.
Annie Dookhan, 35, of Franklin, was indicted by a grand jury on 17 counts of obstruction of justice, eight counts of tampering with evidence, perjury and pretending to hold a college degree.

"We allege that Annie Dookhan tampered with drug evidence and fabricated test results on multiple occasions," state Attorney General Martha Coakley said. "Her alleged actions have sent ripple effects throughout the criminal Justice System

(visit the link for the full news article)

This Woman is alleged to have worked at this Lab for 9 years, and involved in more then 34,000 criminal convictions. The State's Attorney General has alleged that she falsified lab results. That when a test for drugs came back negative she would take a positive samples from another Defendant, and add it to the negative result to make it positive. So far 200 Defendants have been released from prison. But what about the 34,000 other cases that she was involved with?
She did apologize for her actions saying that she never meant to hurt anyone.
"I screwed up big-time," she is quoted as saying in a summary of the interview. "I messed up bad; it's my fault. I don't want the lab to get in trouble."
Good luck Mass. in sorting this mess out.
What I don't understand is why this was not all over the News when she was originally charged back in September.

www.google.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Just discovered that another member reported this scandal when it broke back in October, and want to give credit to him for breaking the original story on ATS

ATS

Well, I think they're keeping it quiet because she's probably not the only gubmint stoolie who falsifies things like test results in order to gain a conviction.

What can we learn from this? That our current system is corrupt, that law enforcement and the courts seem to be in cahoots to convict as many people as possible to funnel them into the mostly privatized prison system, and that, even though a person may be innocent, the system will do its best to find them "guilty" in order to feed the industrialized prison system beast.

She didn't just "screw up", she was probably given a lot of money under the table, and told that, if she's busted, she's on her own. They probably knew that she didn't hold a degree; it's a good excuse in case she's found out.

reply to post by VeniVidi


This wasn't all over the news because it makes TPTB look bad. It doesn't help their agenda if a lowly grunt flubs up and gets caught, so they brush the story under the rug and hope it doesn't fester.

I'd like to see her do life in prison, personally and I'm not the least bit joking. Not even slightly.

She destroyed lives. Her. By her own direct hands and work. People who wouldn't have seen whatever life they enjoyed pretty much end, had to, because she had her own motives and reasons for doing this to them.

Well... a lifetime to think about it in exchange sounds a fair one to me. It doesn't even take into account the people beyond those she directly destroyed. The kids and wives and families of those who went into the system ...thanks to her.

Throw the book at her so hard, it knocks her off her chair is what I say.

This is one woman in one lab.

Others are [snip] bricks right now I bet.

The Article states that an Assistant DA resigned, because of some type of personal relationship with her.

An assistant district attorney in Norfolk County resigned in October after it was revealed that he received sometimes-personal phone calls and emails from Dookhan, a violation of protocols.

Wonder what his involvement in all this was.

Originally posted by VeniVidi
The Article states that an Assistant DA resigned, because of some type of personal relationship with her.

An assistant district attorney in Norfolk County resigned in October after it was revealed that he received sometimes-personal phone calls and emails from Dookhan, a violation of protocols.

Wonder what his involvement in all this was.

That's what I mean about them all being "in cahoots", as we say here in Texas. Start picking at one thread, and soon the whole sweater will fall to pieces. God knows we can't have that! Another classic conspiracy swept under the rug by the "lone perpetrator" garbage.

Originally posted by CALGARIAN
This is one woman in one lab.

Others are [snip] bricks right now I bet.

edit on 18-12-2012 by elevatedone because: (no reason given)

This is the one that caught my attention.

The only motive authorities have described is that Dookhan wanted to be seen as a good worker

What kind of a work culture is being fostered in this (and probably other) police labs? Do you get a bonus for returning the most positive results in a month or a reprimand if enough state submitted samples aren't dirty?

Originally posted by Wrabbit2000
I'd like to see her do life in prison, personally and I'm not the least bit joking. Not even slightly.

She destroyed lives. Her. By her own direct hands and work. People who wouldn't have seen whatever life they enjoyed pretty much end, had to, because she had her own motives and reasons for doing this to them.

Well... a lifetime to think about it in exchange sounds a fair one to me. It doesn't even take into account the people beyond those she directly destroyed. The kids and wives and families of those who went into the system ...thanks to her.

Throw the book at her so hard, it knocks her off her chair is what I say.

She should be sentenced to a term which represents all the false prosecutions she helped make happen. 34,000 cases? Her freedom should be available to her sometime in the next ice age.

Seriously...

Consecutive sentences too.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


And all those 34,000 cases should be thrown out.

reply to post by VeniVidi


What I don't understand is why this was not all over the News when she was originally charged back in September.

it was on local radio and news where i live, i live 10 mins from Franklin. in fact i grew up in that town lol. (i don't know her) don't know if i remember seeing it on tv though.

"heh this is only one person who got caught, how many of these people have done this just because they had a bad day and said F it im gonna screw someone over."

dna technology is only as good as the hands its in

it can exonerate you , or get you life, in those cases its not the judge who is god but the lab technicians.

This is just infuriating! As some one whos life has been seriously effected by the war on drugs it makes me sick to see people on the law enforcment side blatantly breaking laws and the punishment is never half as severe!

This didn't come into the wider view as it casts doubt, significant doubt on one of the processes in the (your, and probably everyone elses too) justice system, a system where there is already enough doubt.

Doesn't surprise me one bit this didn't blow up.

reply to post by VeniVidi


Gosh.. think how many lives this woman has ruined...really sad..
She is a psychopath and should be punished in a fitting way.
Limbo

It's likely a cultural thing with her. I saw her on the news. Looks like she is from India, and from what I've experienced working with East Indian people is that they will cheat and lie to be viewed as a "good worker".

why would positive test results equate to "good worker" but not negatives?

Originally posted by tgidkp
why would positive test results equate to "good worker" but not negatives?

You are kidding right? If there are more positives than negative findings for drug tests, then there are more convictions. More convictions with "positive test results" make the lab look good, and get more business from the Feds.

Follow the money, same old story.