Delaware's crime lab still isn't fully operational more than a month after the General Assembly eliminated the office of chief medical examiner and nearly a month after state officials fired Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Richard T. Callery.
The new Division of Forensic Science continues to perform autopsies and test DNA, among other duties formerly performed by the medical examiner's office. But there is no management structure outlined for the office and drug testing remains suspended due to thefts from the Controlled Substances Lab.
State officials say they hope to have an organizational chart in a few days and restart drug testing in August, but they concede there is a long way to go before the laboratory is back on stable ground, let alone the 'state of the art crime lab' that Delaware Attorney Beau Biden called for in April.
'We are working very hard to get back up and running,' said Safety And Homeland Security Secretary Lewis Schiliro. 'We need to re-establish trust and credibility in that lab. This will take some time to do.'
New employee IDs will be key cards that only allow employees into certain areas and keep track of arrivals, etc. (Photo: ROBERT CRAIG/THE NEWS JOURNAL )
Investigators have documented at least 52 incidents of thefts from the drug lab between 2010 and February 2014. Problems at the lab have jeopardized thousands of past drug convictions and some 200 pending drug prosecutions.. The courts are deciding if the lapses were so egregious that all drug convictions from those years, along with the pending drug cases, should be tossed out.
EARLIER STORY: Callery's behavior could jeopardize homicide cases
And while the problems were largely limited to the drug testing lab, a shadow has been cast over the entire office, which conducts nearly all forensic testing for Delaware police agencies and prosecutors. At least five homicide cases have also been imperiled because Callery, who was fired July 4, was the pathologist who conducted the autopsy.
The law abolishing the medical examiner's office and shifting forensic testing functions from the Division of Health and Human Services to Homeland Security did little more than re-write the code to substitute 'Division of Forensic Sciences' for 'Office of Chief Medical Examiner' and make clear that the Chief Medical Examiner now serves at the pleasure of the Homeland Security Secretary.
All the details about how this would work - and fixes to upgrade the Division of Forensic Science to a 'state-of-the-art facility' - were largely left up to Schiliro and a yet-to-be-named Commission on Forensic Science.
Critics like former Chief Medical Examiner Ali Z. Hameli argue that the state rushed into abolishing the office, ripping down the entire department when it appears the problems were related to the actions of a few individuals and an absentee-manager.
'I would say we don't know the full story here and what happened,' Hameli said.
The criminal investigations of thefts from the lab and allegations that Callery misused state resources for his own benefit are ongoing.
State Sen. Karen Peterson, D-Stanton, who voted against abolishing the office, said the new law 'didn't solve a problem, it just moved a problem.'
'All the same problems still exist, the same temptations still exist, except now it is under the control of the state police, who have a vested interest in the outcome of cases,' she said, adding that when she asked questions, 'the answer was, 'we will work that out.''
Schiliro said the independence of the office, and lack of oversight, contributed to the problems at the drug lab and noted that many other states have forensic testing labs, like the state of Maryland, associated with police agencies.
Schiliro said there were problems at the office that had to be addressed promptly. If the office had been running well, a re-organization would not have been needed, he said.
While administrative issues, like the lines of authority, are being worked out, the practical, scientific work continues, he said.
'When we look at what we are doing, the science shouldn't change. None of what we do should change that,' he said, adding he hopes that that part of the job will be enhanced.
'I'm not here to put a band-aid on the problem. What I'm here to do is make the office better, make it one that the criminal justice system can rely on,' Schiliro said, adding he will be looking to the outside review of the office by Andrews International as a guide.
'Priority number one,' Schiliro said, is getting the drug testing lab back up and running, which he expects will happen in August, 'at least on a limited basis.'
'Before we open the controlled substance lab for testing, we will undergo an audit and complete a FQS national forensic accreditation process,' said Acting Director Randall L. Hughes.
The lab has been closed since February, when state police seized all drug evidence being held at the Controlled Substances Lab, as part of the criminal investigation into drug thefts. Since that time Delaware has spent over $100,000 to send drug evidence to an outside lab in Pennsylvania for testing.
'The reality of it was the chain of custody, at least in the Controlled Substances Lab, was totally inadequate,' Schiliro said, due in part to a flawed computer tracking program and 'sloppy record keeping.'
In the law enforcement world of evidence control, 'this is probably one of the worst case scenarios,' he said.
The 10-member Commission on Forensic Science that is supposed to both oversee the forensic testing operations and insulate the facility from outside pressures is expected to be in place sometime after Labor Day, said Schiliro, who will be a member of the commission along with DHSS Secretary Rita Landgraf. Other members will include someone from the Delaware Attorney General's Office, someone from the Delaware Public Defender's office, two members of the General Assembly, a police official and three individuals 'with formal training in forensic science,' according to the legislation passed in June.
State Prosecutor Kathleen Jennings said the Attorney General's office has 'the utmost confidence' in Schiliro's leadership and believes that all the actions taken so far have been 'an excellent first step.'
Delaware Public Defender Brendan O'Neill said the key is that this new division be properly funded, managed and staffed 'to ensure that it functions independently from any law enforcement pressure.
'We cannot afford a repeat of the negligence and corruption that infected the old lab,' he said.
The state expects to begin the national search for a new division director and new chief medical examiner this week.
Contact Sean O'Sullivan at 302 324-2777 or sosullivan@delawareonline.com or on Twitter @SeanGOSullivan
Read or Share this story: http://delonline.us/1mWWaQj
Entities 0 Name: Schiliro Count: 8 1 Name: Delaware Count: 7 2 Name: Callery Count: 3 3 Name: General Assembly Count: 2 4 Name: Commission on Forensic Science Count: 2 5 Name: DHSS Count: 1 6 Name: Kathleen Jennings Count: 1 7 Name: Maryland Count: 1 8 Name: Forensic Science Count: 1 9 Name: Division of Health and Human Services Count: 1 10 Name: Division of Forensic Science Count: 1 11 Name: Sean O'Sullivan Count: 1 12 Name: Dr. Richard T. Callery Count: 1 13 Name: Ali Z. Hameli Count: 1 14 Name: Sen. Karen Peterson Count: 1 15 Name: Pennsylvania Count: 1 16 Name: Beau Biden Count: 1 17 Name: Randall L. Hughes Count: 1 18 Name: Lewis Schiliro Count: 1 19 Name: Brendan O'Neill Count: 1 20 Name: Rita Landgraf Count: 1 21 Name: Hameli Count: 1 22 Name: Andrews International Count: 1 Related 0 Url: http://ift.tt/X3vPuE Title: Brazil: Reforms Fail to End Torture | Human Rights Watch Description: (São Paulo, July 28, 2014) - Torture remains a serious problem in Brazil despite recent measures to curb the practice, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to the Brazilian Congress. Congress should approve a bill that would safeguard against ill-treatment of detainees by requiring officials to physically present them before a judge for a "custody hearing" within 24 hours of arrest.
Post a Comment for "Division of Forensic Science struggles to get going"