BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan is asking the state’s highest court to consider dismissing tens of thousands of drug convictions linked to a failed state drug lab.
The now-closed Hinton State Lab became infamous after a 2014 investigation revealed significant mismanagement, subpar training and other issues which culminated in two chemists --Sonja Farak and Annie Dookhan-- being convicted of corruption in one of the largest crime lab scandals in American history.
In paperwork obtained by WBZ NewsRadio, DA Ryan writes, "this is a systemic issue, and it requires a systemic response" -- rather than piecemeal or partial litigation for each individual case.
Her office, along with Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollin's office, are asking the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to examine the ten years of work from the lab to reconsider it's drug convictions as a whole.
The state has previously rejected a wide dismissal, as thousands of convictions related to Dookhan and Farak's misconduct have already been vacated by the high court over the years.
WBZ NewsRadio's Karyn Regal (@KarynRegal) reports.
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