Disaster Preparedness

Check out how a school in Washington is preparing for the worst scenario a school will ever face:

 


Is it too much or should every school be doing something similar?

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Quarterly Stats - October 2012

Here's the stats for July through September. 

Total cases handled: 53 files - A few lower.  I don't know why.  I was definitely busier this past quarter.

Number of pleas taken: 17

Number of cases closed after arrest but before indictment: 3 - Lowest since I started tracking these

Main reason why:  Transferred to feds to prosecute.

Number of cases where guns were used:  27

Saddest case:  16 year old steals his grandfather's car, smokes marijuana, evades a police checkpoint, and then leads them on a high speed city chase where he crashes into a van and rolls it over, causing paralysis in the 85 year old driver. 

Best reason requested for adjournment:  Defendant, who was going to jail, asked for a month long adjournment because he was the sole caretaker of his mother who was having surgery the next day.  The judge asked mom, who was in the courtroom, about the surgery.  She told the court she had no idea what the defendant was talking about.  Adjournment denied. 

Youngest defendant: 14 (robbery)

Types of cases handled: gun point robberies, burglaries, car thefts, shootings, stabbings, gun possession, drug possession, attempted murders, murders, vehicular assault

Worst offender(s) of the quarter: Three robbers.  Gang members committed a series of gun point robberies in their neighborhood and then threatened and intimidated anyone that called the police on them.  This is becoming a common occurrence.  People are robbing people they know so they can intimidate them easily.

Sentence for the kid who shot the pregnant teenager:  3 and a half years.  It was the minimum sentence.  Mom and baby were healthy.  The worst part?  The 16 year old didn't know she was five months pregnant until she went to the hospital due to the shooting injuries.

And to wrap it up, I heard a defense attorney use the phrase "last but not least" five times today during a summation.  At what point does it lose its effectiveness?

Compare it to previous quarters here, here, and here.

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Courtroom Perils

The danger of being a defense attorney:

Even inanimate objects aren't safe:

Even the guys with guns must be careful (what is the guy in the audience doing?):

I've never witnessed anyone get punched in court, but I have seen some fantastic freak outs and screaming matches.  An unhappy defendant is usually mostly upset with their attorney first, the judge second, and, thankfully, the ADA on the case last.

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How the Lab Works

It happens every minute, in every city across the country.  Police officers recover evidence that needs to be scientifically tested and its accuracy accounted for.  A bag of crack can pass from the officer who recovered it, to the officer who brings it to the lab, to the person who receives it, to the person who weighs it, to the person who tests it, to the DA for trial.

And many more people in between.

So how do labs ensure accuracy?  How can we assure the jury that the bag of crack we show them at trial is the same bag taken from the defendant on the street?  It's all in the paperwork and the system the lab uses to test the evidence.

Here's the steps in my current county:

1) The police officer recovers the evidence.
2) A police officer seals the evidence in an evidence bag, labelling the bag with identifying information about the case so we all know which case it belongs to.  The officer also fills out paperwork that goes to the lab asking for tests to be done.
3) A police officer takes the evidence to the lab.  Ideally, this is the same officer who recovered the evidence, although it usually isn't.
4) The lab receives the evidence.  An evidence receiver is there during business hours and will physically take possession of it.  During off hours, the officers lock the evidence in a storage locker where evidence receives take it from the next day.  Paperwork is filled out no matter how it comes into the lab.
5) The evidence receivers send the evidence to the storage unit designated for the type of evidence - DNA, guns, drugs, arson, etc.
6) The scientist testing it removes the evidence and begins working on it.  Paperwork is filled out each time the item is moved to note what is happening.  Every time an item is unsealed, the scientist marks it on the bag and will reseal it.
7) Another analyst reviews all the paperwork and tests before verifying the results.
8) Once testing is complete, the evidence usually remains at the lab in storage until trial.
9) For trial, I have the officer who recovered the evidence remove it from the lab and bring it to me in its sealed condition.  Then, I keep it with me for trial.

The news of rogue chemists over the last few years is disturbing.  It happens in a few ways.  A chemist falsifies their credentials on their resume, gets lazy and doesn't follow the required procedures, or just makes the results up.  Every time this happens, it affects the entire system.  First, innocent people might be in jail or convicted due to perjured testimony or falsified results.  Second, the procedures of the lab are questioned and in many cases the lab is shut down.  Third, it affects every case in the future.  Defense attorneys will argue, and jurors will wonder, how anyone can possibly trust any test coming from that lab.

You might wonder how it is possible to falsify results when they get reviewed?  Well, the review only extends to the paperwork.  A second analyst is not performing a second test on the evidence.  That would create double the work for things like DNA which already take two months.  The reviewing analyst checks the paperwork, verifying the tests were completed correctly and the results are accurate.

It's similar to wrongful convictions.  Every one sends shockwaves through the system, disrupting the foundation upon which a solid case should be built.  Once fraud like this is discovered, every case in the lab must be reviewed going back years.  It is an incredible waste of time, resources, and someone's liberty.  For what?  A paycheck?  Laziness?

Prosecutors must prosecute these offenders to the fullest extent possible - perjury, filing false instruments, fraud.  It cannot be tolerated. 

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Why We Love Social Media

Facebook, Twitter, Myspace (anyone use that anymore?), google+.  I'm on record by saying I love them all.  People need to brag about their crimes and what better way than in writing on Facebook.  They love to threaten witnesses.  They connect with a group of friends, which makes it easier to show their affiliation with a gang.  They post pictures of themselves smoking weed, brandishing guns, or of their new tattoos.  Plaintiffs in civil cases will post pictures dancing in bars, going for hikes, or lifting heavy objects, all activities they claim they are unable to do.

And they also plan crimes.  The NYPD is increasing their social media presence and investigation unit for gang crime to help stop street violence before it starts.   

Everyone knows that we leave a permanent mark with whatever we post on the internet. Yet no one seems to care.  I'm not complaining.  I'm thankful.  Without stupid criminals, my job wouldn't exist. 
"Facebook Cops" coming soon to a television near you. 

To illustrate the point:

More like this:
The Mob Mentality
Facebook Me From Jail
Confessions of a Facebook Stalker

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Rogue Chemists

A Massachusetts chemist faces felony charges for falsifying chemical tests in narcotics cases.  Annie Dookhan made up her degree along with her results when pretending to test thousands of drugs and even testifying about the results under oath.


The Nassau County lab in New York State was just shut down for similar reasons last year.  These issues are dangerous to everyone involved, from the prosecutors trying the case to the wrongfully convicted defendants.  The next few posts will discuss how a forensic lab works to control accuracy and the fallout from lying chemists.

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