Crime & Safety

JP Drug Lab Scandal: The Week in Review

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:

  • Boston city brass developed a "crisis plan" to deal with as many as 600 convicts returning to the city's streets.
  • The damage may extend to hundreds of federal cases, the Globe reported.
  • A suspect in a notorious 1988 murder was found "not guilty" on new drug charges that the defense attorney had argued had been compromised by Dookhan.
  • The Herald found more evidence of how the now-shuttered State Drug Lab in JP was consistently missing deadlines to analyze samples.
  • The respected scientific journal Nature found that overworked forensic labs are the norm in the U.S., with heavy caseloads and increasing backlogs.

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.

Find out what's happening in Jamaica Plainfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Find out what's happening in Jamaica Plainfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

 

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