Head of State's Department of Public Health, JP's John Auerbach, Resigns Over JP Drug Lab Scandal

Public Health Department Commissioner John Auerbach, a JP resident, resigned Monday, saying "the buck stops with me" in the scandal that has shuttered the state drug lab on South Street — and put thousands of convictions at risk.

The scandal at the state's drug lab in Jamaica Plain claimed its highest-level victim to date with the resignation of the commission of public health. John Auerbach, who according to the JP Gazette lives here in the neighborhood, stepped down Monday. In a statement, he accepted responsibility. "It is clear that there was insufficient quality monitoring, reporting and investigating on the part of supervisors and managers surrounding the former Department of Public Health drug lab in Jamaica Plain – and ultimately, as Commissioner, the buck stops with me." As many as 34,000 criminal cases could be undermined by the alleged actions of chemist Annie Dookhan. She is alleged to have tampered with evidence in a variety of ways, including so as to…

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