Monday, October 15, 2012
A Monday court session appeared to go smoothly as at least 10 drug dealers had their convictions put on hold as a result of the scandal at the State Drug Lab in Jamaica Plain.
An air of normality is settling in to the extraordinary business of setting convicted drug dealers free as Suffolk County courts deal with the fallout from the State Drug Lab scandal. On Monday Suffolk County Superior Court Judge Christine McEvoy heard from convict after convict whose cases may have been tainted by disgraced chemist Annie Dookhan. Through the morning session, about 10 convicts had their sentences "stayed." That means they can provisionally go free provided they meet any bail requirements and aren't serving time for offenses unconnected to Dookhan. She's accused of tainting drug evidence in cases involving up to 34,000 defendants during her nine years as an analyst at the State Drug Lab in Jamaica Plain. On Monday, convicts…
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3 Pemberton Sq, Boston, MA
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Sunday, October 14, 2012
Here's a quick run-down of developments in the State Drug Lab scandal. Evidence tainted by a so-called "rogue chemist" is putting thousands of drug convictions at risk.
It's been another busy week of fallout from the State Drug Lab scandal. "Rogue chemist" Annie Dookhan is alleged to have tainted up to 34,000 drug samples. Concerns over evidence handled by Dookhan has already led to convicted drug dealers being freed from prison. Here are the week's major developments: Monday will be a big day in this evolving story, as a special session to deal with possibly tainted cases begins in Suffolk Superior Court. Patch will keep you updated. For all of Jamaica Plain Patch's coverage of the JP Drug Lab Scandal, please visit our topic page on the issue.
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305 South St, Jamaica Plain, MA
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Friday, October 12, 2012
Shawn Drumgold, 47, who was falsely imprisoned for 14 years for the shocking murder of a preteen Boston girl, was found not guilty Friday on new drug charges.
A high-profile former murder suspect who argued that a "rogue chemist" tainted drug evidence against him has been found not guilty by a judge. Shawn Drumgold, 47, of Abington, was found not guilty on new drug charges by Roxbury District Court Judge David Weingarten, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office. Drumgold is a controversial figure in that he was convicted of the shocking 1988 murder of a 12-year-old girl on a Roxbury playground, then set free after witnesses changed their stories. Prosecutors say that in the just-finished drug trial, the judge's "not guilty" ruling was not based on whether disgraced chemist Annie Dookhan handled samples in his case. Drumgold's attorney had argued that initials on lab records …
A chemist who worked alongside the disgraced Annie Dookhan for eight years at the JP Drug Lab told a judge the "rogue chemist" had nearly unfettered access to the lab.
A coworker of the chemist accused of mishandling evidence in ways that could set hundreds of convicted drug dealers loose on Boston streets gave a glimpse into the work life of the now-shuttered JP State Drug Lab. Daniella Frasca, who worked alongside disgraced lab worker Annie Dookhan for eight years, testified in a drug trial Thursday, according to the Associated Press. Frasca told State Police she never saw Dookhan do anything wrong, Patch news partner 7News reports. But under close questioning from a defense attorney, she did say Dookhan had the access both to codes to disarm the lab's alarm system as well as a computer in the evidence room. On Friday, the drug defendant, Shawn Drumgold, was found not guilty, according to the Suffolk …
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305 South St, Jamaica Plain, MA
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Thursday, October 11, 2012
The city's top brass has put in a "crisis re-entry plan" for inmates released from prison as a result of the JP State Drug Lab scandal.
With as many as 600 convicted drug dealers up for early release from prison, city officials say they have a plan to limit the damage to Boston's neighborhoods. "This is an emergency," Mayor Thomas Menino said in a joint press conference with Boston Police Chief Ed Davis and Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley. Menino outlined a plan for Boston to deal with the fallout from the alleged actions of a "rogue chemist" at the JP Drug Lab who may have tainted samples in thousands of drug cases. "We are concerned about the large number of individuals who will be released from state prison," Menino said, "with no plan for transition back into society, and just as concerned about those who may return to a lifestyle that can cause turmoil on …
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-71.057309
Boston City Hall
1 City Hall Sq, Boston, MA
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Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Chemist Annie Dookhan refused to testify Wednesday in a case involving Shawn Drumgold, who spent 14 years in prison for an infamous Boston murder.
UPDATE, Wednesday, 6:28 p.m. — The Globe reports that the judge will not immediately drop charges in the drug case against Shawn Drumgold. The judge said he will give prosecutors time to determine whether or not "rogue chemist" Annie Dookhan handled the evidence against Drumgold. ~~~~~ Two notorious figures in Massachusetts crime crossed paths in court Wednesday, as "rogue chemist" Annie Dookhan pleaded the Fifth to avoid testifying. Dookhan exercised her Constitutional right against self-incrimination in refusing to answer questions in a drug case against Shawn Drumgold. That's the same Shawn Drumgold who spent 14 years behind bars for the murder of 12-year-old Darlene Tiffany Moore. The child was killed in crossfire between rival gangs …
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
On Tuesday, a man who had pleaded guilty to distributing cocaine took it back because the drug sample had been tested by "rogue chemist" Annie Dookhan of the JP State Drug Lab.
Yet another convict had charges cleared on Tuesday in the sprawling "disaster" emerging from the State Drug Lab in JP. Prosecutors went along with a motion on behalf of Charles Adilson, 32, to take back his August 2011 plea of guilty to possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, according to Jake Wark, spokesperson for the Suffolk County District Attorney's office. Boston Police saw him do a drug buy near the Pine Street Inn, prosecutors said. Chemist Annie Dookhan processed the alleged cocaine in her now-shuttered JP lab. The substance can't be retested because it was destroyed on a court order. Dookhan is suspected of tainting 34,000 samples in cases that have put 1,100 people behind bars. Adilson did not get his freedom on Tuesday…
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305 South St, Jamaica Plain, MA
State labs
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The case of "rogue chemist" Annie Dookhan, accused of tainting drug evidence in thousands of cases, should be seen in context of increasing pressure on forensic labs, professionals say.
"Rogue chemist" Annie Dookhan, accused of tainting drug samples in thousands of Bay State cases, didn't operate in a vacuum. More like a sweatshop. Lab professionals say caseloads have soared across the U.S., with backlogs of more than a month rising sharply since 2005, according to an article in Nature. Dookhan's case is already infamous here in Massachusetts, where it has shaken confidence in the justice system. Authorities say Dookhan, for reasons unknown, altered evidence and rushed through testing in up to 34,000 drug cases during her years as a chemist at the State Drug Lab in JP. An estimated 1,100 people are behind bars based on evidence she handled. One theory, voiced by Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, is that …
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305 South St, Jamaica Plain, MA
/articles/system-overload-backlog-soars-at-drug-labs-nationwide-not-just-shuttered-lab-in-jamaica-plain
/locations/7983182
Friday, October 5, 2012
On Friday, two alleged criminals went free and another had a prosecution against him dropped because evidence against them had been handled by a chemist accused of tainting thousands of samples at at Jamaica Plain lab.
More defendants got out on bail or had cases dropped on Friday as shocks from the actions of a "rogue chemist" continue to shake the justice system. The state is culling through 34,000 cases where drug evidence was handled by chemist Annie Dookhan. She's accused of tainting drug samples during years of employment at the State Drug Lab in Jamaica Plain. On Friday the state cycled 19 defendants through one courtroom at Boston Municipal Court. In a process pointedly criticized by Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley as a waste of time and resources, few of the cases turned out to have any link to Dookhan. Only five of the 19, according to a Globe count, were handled by the chemist at the shuttered Jamaica Plain lab. Two men went free …
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24 New Chardon St, Boston, MA
Edward Brooke Courthouse
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Marcus Pixley, who became a wanted fugitive after he was released on lowered bail because of the scandal at the Jamaica Plain state drug lab, was arrested on Friday morning.
A man wanted for drug crimes in the South End who posted bail then went on the lam this week was arrested in Quincy on Friday morning, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's office. Marcus Pixley, who became a wanted fugitive after he was released on lowered bail because of the scandal at the shuttered state drug lab on South Street, was apprehended by Quincy Police on a warrant issued yesterday after he defaulted on a previously-scheduled court date. Pixley's bail had been lowered from $5,000 to $1,000 because evidence in his case was tested by rogue chemist Annie Dookhan at the state drug lab in JP that is the center of an ongoing investigation. As many as 34,000 cases could have been affected. Pixley, who is a convicted …
Deborah Richmond
1:06 pm on Friday, February 1, 2013
It's being committed incivil suits too. It all comes down to, what some will do for MONEY and their own reputation. This has going on for decades and continues aa no one will step up and take the inciative to investigate and prosecute the PROFFESSIONAL wrong doers! more ›