by Bert | Jun 7, 2018 | Massachusetts
The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts is deciding whether and how to punish the Attorney General’s Office (“AGO”) for the misconduct perpetrated by two former attorneys in the wide-ranging criminal justice scandal that began with the troubled and drug-addicted...
by Bert | Dec 14, 2017 | Massachusetts
As we promised in an earlier piece, here is an update on the disciplinary prosecution of Cape and Islands Assistant District Attorney Laura Marshard. Earlier this year, she went to trial on disciplinary charges related to suppressing exculpatory evidence, failing to...
by Bert | Sep 26, 2017 | Massachusetts
Last week, the ACLU of Massachusetts and the Public Defender Division of the Committee for Public Counsel Services filed a petition in the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts (the state’s highest court). In it, the petitioners have requested that the Court dismiss...
by Bert | Jul 20, 2017 | Massachusetts
Late last month, Judge Richard J. Carey of Hampden County Superior Court decided on several defendants’ challenges to their criminal convictions, which were based on disgraced Amherst lab ex-employee Sonja Farak’s misconduct. Farak exploited her position as a chemist...
by Bert | Jun 16, 2017 | Massachusetts
Two major crime lab scandals have engulfed Massachusetts law enforcement in recent years. The massive negative impact that Annie Dookhan and Sonja Farak have had on the criminal justice system deservedly soaks up a great deal of media attention, but they are far from...
by Bert | May 12, 2017 | Massachusetts, New York, Texas
In what may be a sign of much-needed change, a number of stories from around the country reflect potentially increased efforts to discipline prosecutors who have engaged in misconduct or are suspected of unethical behavior. Below are three different stories about...