crime lab scandal

The relatively recent case of Annie Dookhan bungling an untold number of cases in Massachusetts drug lab where she worked might be shocking, but it’s not new. Over the past several years, crime labs across the country have been under scrutiny for everything from a lack of proper standards to poor hiring practices and little oversight. While the case of Dookhan is serious, to be sure, it is only a symptom of the bigger problem.

A man who was released on bail for drug charges due to tainted evidence from the drug lab scandal apparently skipped his court date and is now a fugitive. While the internet commenters may be going crazy, if the evidence held by the state is clearly suspect, this is absolutely how the system has to work.