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She recovered, made it through college and got a job as a chemist at the Amherst Crime Lab, where she tested confiscated drugs. The scandal led. At this point, Farakunlike Dookhandidn't admit anything. We couldn't do it without you. State prosecutors gave Farak the immunity they had declined to grant two years earlier, then asked when she started analyzing samples while high. One was clearly dated November 16, 2011a year and two months before her arrest. Poetically, that landmark case originated from the Hinton lab, although Dookhan didn't conduct the analysis in question. chemist, Sonja Farak, had been battling drug addiction and had tampered with samples she was assigned to test around the time she tested the samples in Penate's case. Deval Patrick's office didn't learn about the protocol breach until December 2011. 3.3.2023 4:50 PM, 2022 Reason Foundation | She grew up in Portsmouth with her sister Amy. Reporting for this story was supported by the Fund for Investigative Journalism. ", Officials rushed to downplay the situation in Amherst. Nassif considered it a lapse in judgment, but not a disqualifying one; Nassif's boss didn't think it necessary to alert the prosecutors whose cases relied on the samples, much less the defendants. Ryan then filed a The justices ordered Healey's department to cover all costs of notifying all defendants whose cases were dismissed. On a Friday afternoon in January 2013, a call came in to Coakley's office: "We have another Annie Dookhan out west.". After the Supreme Court's decision, a skeptical colleague started tracking how many microscope slides Dookhan used to test samples for cocaine. Farak trabaj en el laboratorio Amherst desde el verano de 2004 y poco despus comenz a tomar las drogas del laboratorio. Deborah Becker Twitter Host/ReporterDeborah Becker is a senior correspondent and host at WBUR. Applying Routine Activity Theory: A Case Study of the Sonya Farak Drug They were all rendered unacceptable. Despite clear indications that Farak used a variety of narcoticsher worksheets mentioned phentermine, and that vial of powdered oxycodone-acetaminophen had been found at her benchKaczmarek also proceeded as if crack cocaine were Farak's sole drug. Massachusetts crime lab scandal worsens: Dookhan and Farak. Coakley's office finally launched a criminal investigation in July 2012, more than a year after the infraction was discovered by Dookhan's supervisors. This scandal has thrown thousands of drug cases into question, on top of more than 24,000 cases tainted by a scandal involving ex-chemist Annie Dookhan at the state's Hinton Lab in Jamaica Plain. The civil lawsuit was one of the last tied to prosecutors' disputedhandling of the case against disgraced ex-chemist Sonja Farak, who was convicted in 2014 of ingesting drug samples she was supposed to test at the Amherst state drug lab. Perhaps, as criminal justice scandals inevitably emerge, we need to get more independent eyes on the evidence from the start. Mucha gente que vio el programa se pregunta: dnde est Sonja Farak ahora? ", Prosecutors maintained that Faraks rogue behavior spanned just a few months. The number is 888-999-2881. Before her sentencing, Farak failed a drug test while out on bail, according to Mass Live. "I dont know how the Velis report reached the conclusion it did after reviewing the underlying email documents, said Randy Gioia, deputy chief counsel at the Committee for Public Counsel Services, the states public defender office. In the eight and a half years she worked at the Hinton State Laboratory in Boston, her supervisors apparently never noticed she certified samples as narcotics without actually testing them, a type of fraud called "dry-labbing." B. ut when Penates lawyer tried to obtain the documents not certain what was in them before his clients 2013 trial, he was rebuffed by state prosecutors who said the papers were irrelevant according to emails included in investigative reports unsealed earlier this month. In fall 2013, a Springfield, Massachusetts, judge convened hearings with the explicit aim of establishing "the timing and scope" of Farak's "alleged criminal conduct.". Sonja Farak Today: Where Is She Now? | Heavy.com Farak struggled with mental health throughout her life, the documentary series explains. She was also under the influence when she took the stand during her trial. Defense attorneys say withheld Farak notes implicate prosecutors - News At the time of her arrest, she had resided in 37 Laurel Park in Northampton. The premise revolves around documentary filmmaker Erin Lee Carr following the effects of crime drug lab chemists Sonja Farak and Annie Dookhan and their tampering with evidence and its aftereffects.. Dookhan was accused of forging reports and tampering with samples to . The Board of Bar Overseers (BBO) is reviewing the actions of three prosecutors in the investigation of the scandal to determine whether any of them deliberately withheld potentially exculpatory evidence. In addition to ordering the dismissal of many thousands of cases, the Supreme Judicial Court directed a committee to draft a "checklist" for prosecutors, clarifying their obligation to turn over evidence to defendants. She was released in 2015, as reported by Mass Live. And then the bigger investigation was going to be someone else.". Its unclear if Farak is still with Lee, as they have both remained out of the public eye since the case. Instead, she submitted an intentionally vague letter to the judge claiming defense attorneys already had everything. Rollins said it covers "a period of time in which either now disgraced chemist Annie Dookhan, or another convicted chemist Sonja Farak ," worked there. The place was closed as soon as Faraks crimes came to light. In 2019, she was seen leaving the Springfield Federal Court but declined to comment on the status of the case. The responsibility of the mess that she created should also rest upon the shoulders of her workplace that allowed her the opportunity to indulge so freely in drugs in the first place. She had unrestricted access to the evidence room. In January 2014, she pleaded guilty to evidence tampering and drug possession. As he leafed through three boxes of evidence, he found the substance abuse worksheets and diaries. The case of Rolando Penate has become a leading example for lawyers calling for further investigation into alleged misconduct by prosecutors who handled documents seized from Sonja Farak, the Amherst crime-lab chemist convicted of stealing and tampering with drug samples. "It would be difficult to overstate the significance of these documents, Ryan Where Is Sonja Farak From Netflix's 'Drug Scandal' Doc Now? Local prosecutors also remained in the dark. The governor also tapped a local attorney, David Meier, to count how many individuals' cases might be tainted. It features the true story of Sonja Farak, a former state drug lab chemist in Massachusetts who was arrested in 2013 for consuming the drugs she was supposed to test and tampering with the evidence to cover up her tracks. In January of 2013, Sonja Farak, a chemist at a state crime lab in Massachusetts, was arrested for tampering with evidence related to criminal drug cases (Small, 2020).A year later, Farak pleaded guilty to tampering with drug evidence, theft of a controlled substance, and drug possession .She received a sentence of 18 months with 5 years of probation and was released in 2015. Penate was convicted in December 2013 and sentenced to serve five to seven years. Grand Jury Transcript - Sonja Farak - September 16, 2015. She was ar-rested for tampering with evidence while abusing narcotics at work. Biden Embraces the Fearmongering, Vows To Squash D.C.'s Mild Criminal Justice Reforms, The Flap Over Biden's Comment About 2 Fentanyl Deaths Obscures Prohibition's Role in Causing Them, Conservatives Turn Further Against WarExcept Maybe With Mexico. Ryan finally viewed the file in the attorney generals offices in October 2014. The attorney general's officeKaczmarek or her supervisorscould have asked a judge to determine whether the worksheets were actually privileged, as Kaczmarek later acknowledged. "No reasonablejury could conclude that this evidence is not favorable.". At the time of Penates trial, the state Attorney Generals Office contended Faraks misdeeds dated back only as far as 2012. Farak worked for the Amherst Drug Lab in Massachusetts for 9 years when she was convicted of stealing and using them. Massachusetts drug lab scandal tied to Sonja Farak and Hinton Lab Maybe it's not a matter of checklists or reminders that prosecutors have to keep their eyes open for improprieties. Sonja Farak stole, ingested or manufactured drugs almost every day for eight years while working as a chemist at a state lab in Amherst, Massachusetts. To better estimate how many convictions will have to be reviewed because of Farak, the Supreme Judicial Court ", But another co-worker was suspicious, particularly since he "never saw Dookhan in front of a microscope.". She was arrested in 2013 when the supervisor at the Amherst lab was made aware that two samples were missing. She continued to experience suicidal thoughts, but instead of going through with those thoughts, she started taking the drugs that she would be testing at work. "All Defendant had to do to honor the Plaintiffs Brady rights was to turn over copies of documents that were obviously exculpatory as to the Farak defendants or accede to one of the repeated requests from counsel, including Plaintiffs counsel, that they be permitted to inspect the evidence seized from Faraks car," Robertson wrote in her ruling. Read More: Where is Sonja Farak Sister Now? In her June 17 ruling, U.S. Magistrate Judge Katherine Robertson dismissed former Assistant Attorney General Anne Kaczmarek's claims of qualified immunity a doctrine that gives legal immunity to some public officials accused of misconduct. Why did she do that and where has it left her? Kaczmarek argued for qualified immunity after she was sued by Rolando Penate, who spent five years in prison on drug charges in which the evidence in his case was tested by Farak. | Judge dismisses 'qualified immunity' claim in suit against ex - WBUR Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility at GBH, Transparency in Coverage Cost-Sharing Disclosures. Sonja Farak, a chemist with a longterm mental health struggle, is the catalyst of the story, but it doesn't end with her. "These drugswere tested fairly," Coakley claimed the day after Farak's arrest. With your support, GBH will continue to innovate, inspire and connect through reporting you value that meets todays moments. Sonja Farak (Netflix) An ex-lab chemist Sonja Farak's negligence and misdeeds shocked US when she was arrested in 2013 for stealing and using drugs from the lab where she worked. The civil lawsuit was one of the last tied to prosecutors' disputed handling of the case against disgraced ex-chemist Sonja Farak, who was convicted in 2014 of ingesting drug samples she was. Name. Sgt. Here are those forms with the admissions of drug use I was talking about," a state police sergeant wrote to Assistant Attorney General Anne Kaczmarek, who led Faraks prosecution, in a When grand jury materials were eventually released to defense attorneys, then, they did not mention that these documents existed. February 2013 email, to which he attached the worksheets. Faraks wife had her own mental health problems, and according to Rolling Stone, Farak would have conflict with her wife every night at home. Joseph Ballou, lead investigator for the state police, called them the most important documents from the car. Without even interviewing Foster, they determined there was "no evidence" of obstruction of justice by her, by Kaczmarek, or by any state prosecutor. "Dookhan's consistently high testing volumes should have been a clear indication that a more thorough analysis and review of her work was needed," an internal review found. "I remember actually sitting on the stand and looking at it," Farak said of her first time swiping from evidence in a trafficking case, "knowing that I had analyzed the sample and that I had then tampered with it.". Because state prosecutors hid Farak's substance abuse diaries, it took far too long for the full timeline of her crimes to become public. The Farak scandal came as the state grappled with another drug lab crisis. Judge Kinder ordered her to produce all potentially privileged documents for his review to determine whether they could be disclosed. When she got married, it turned out that her wife, too, suffered from her own demons, and their collective anguish made Sonja desperate for a reprieve from this life. She even made her own crack in the lab. The medical records stated that she did not have an existing drug problem that was amplified by her access to more substances. Gov. He recommended she lose her law license for two years; the Office of Bar Counsel later argued Kaczmarek should be disbarred. Where Is Sonja Farak From 'How To Fix A Drug Scandal' Now? - Women's Health After contemplating another suicide, she settled on drugs, and the fact that she had such easy access to it at her workplace made it easier for her to get lost in that world. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. In a letter filed with the Supreme Court, Julianne Nassif, a lab supervisor, wrote that Hinton had "appropriate quality control" measures. After her arrest, she received support from her parents, who showed up to her court appearances, the Daily Hampshire Gazette reported. Since her release, she has kept a low profile and managed to stay out of the public . But unlike with Dookhan, there were no independent investigations of Farak or the Amherst lab. Who is Sonja Farak, the former state drug lab chemist featured in the show? The criminal prosecution wasn't the only investigation of the Dookhan scandal. In worksheet notes dated Thursday, Dec. 22, Farak wrote she "tried to resist using @ work, but ended up failing." Although the year she wrote the notes wasn't listed . As How to Fix a Drug Scandal explores, Farak had long struggled with her mental . Patrick appointed the state inspector general to look into it. Defense lawyers doubled down on challenges to every case she might have taintednot just her own, which district attorneys ultimately agreed to dismiss, but also her co-workers', based on Farak's admission that she stole from other chemists' samples. She stopped the interview when asked about crack pipes found at her bench, and state police towed her car back to barracks while they waited on a warrant. Farak is amongst one of the 18 defendants battling the lawsuit filed by Rolando Penate. The lax security and regulations of the place and the negligent supervision of the employees and the stock of standards are the reasons why Farak was encouraged to do what she did. Finding that there did not appear to be enough slides in Dookhan's discard pile to match her numbers, the colleague brought his concerns to an outside attorney, who advised he should be careful making "accusations about a young woman's career," he later told state police. Massachusetts Chemist Prosecution Leads to Falling Consumer Confidence For years, Sonja Farak was addicted to cocaine, methamphetamine, and amphetamines, the kind of drugs usually bought from street dealers in covert transactions that carry the constant risk of arrest. Release year: 2020. Dookhan's transgressions got more press attention: Her story broke first, she immediately confessed, and her misdeeds took place in big-city Boston rather than the western reaches of the state. From the April 2023 issue, Billy Binion The defense bar had raised concerns that prosecutors might be "perceived as having a stake" in such an investigation. GBH News Center for Investigative Reporting. In her initial police interview, given at her dining room table, Dookhan said she "would never falsify" results "because it's someone's life on the line." The lawsuit names Kaczmarek, Farak and three members of the state police. Her access to evidence was not restricted, and she continued testifying in court. You have been subscribed to WBUR Today. Together, we can create a more connected and informed world. Penate argued the court should follow those findings. They tend to be more freeform notes about the session and your impressions of the client's statements and demeanour. Although the year she wrote the notes wasnt listed on the worksheet, in the six years prior to her arrest, 2011 is the only year in which Dec. 22 fell on a Thursday. In 2017, a different judge ruled that Foster's actions constituted a "fraud upon the court," calling the letter "deliberately misleading." It ultimately took a blatant violation to expose Dookhan, and even then her bosses twisted themselves in knots to hold on to their "super woman.". Kaczmarek has repeatedly testified she did not act intentionally and that she thought the worksheets had been turned over to the district attorneys who prosecuted the cases involved. 1. Her ar-rest led to the dismissal of thousands of drug cases in Massachusetts. What Netflix's How To Fix a Drug Scandal didn't tell you - Esquire Sonja Farak now: what happened to the chemist featured in How to Fix a Episode 1. According to a Rolling Stone piece on Farak, she struggled with depression from an early age, one that hasnt responded to medication. They wrote that Farak attempted suicide in high school and was also hospitalized while in college. Only a few months after Dookhan's conviction, it was discovered that another Massachusetts crime lab worker, Sonja Farak, who was addicted to drugs, not only stole her supply from the. Scalia may as well have been describing Dookhan. This was not true, as Nassif's department later conceded. And yet, despite explicit requests for this kind of evidence, state prosecutors withheld Farak's handwritten notes about her drug use, theft, and evidence tampering from defense attorneys and a judge for more than a year. She married Lee after starting her job, but their marriage was rocky. So, in a way, it is not from her that the queue of the blame should begin; it should be from the lab and the authorities themselves. Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters, Sonja Farak is the subject of Netflix's "How To Fix a Drug Scandal. Relying on an investigation conducted by state police, the judges Episode 2. Despite her status as a free woman (who has seemingly disappeared from the public eye), Farak's wrongdoings continue to make waves in the Massachusetts courts. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled in 2015by which time the current state attorney general, Maura Healey, had been electedthat it was "imperative" for the government to "thoroughly investigate the timing and scope of Farak's misconduct." Sonja Farak, la qumica que tomaba drogas que registraba - Ahoramismo.com TherapyNotes is a complete practice management system with everything you need to manage patient records, schedule appointments, meet with patients remotely, create rich documentation, and bill insurance, right at your fingertips. Shawn Musgrave is a reporter who was until recently based in Boston. Given the account that Farak was a law-abiding citizen, it is questioned as to how an Magistrate Judge Robertson denied a request in Penate's lawsuit that Kaczmarek be prohibited from contesting the special hearing officer's findings. Among the papers they seized were handwritten worksheets Farak completed for drug-abuse therapy. At some point, the attorney general's office stopped chasing leads entirely. Between the two women, 47,000 drug convictions and guilty pleas have been dismissed in the last two years, many for misdemeanor possession. Compromised drug samples often fit the definition. If Farak found a substance was a true drug, the person it was confiscated from could be convicted of a substance-related crime. | In Farak's car, police found a "works kit"crack cocaine, a spatula, and copper mesh, often used as a pipe filter. Kaczmarek argued before the BBO, and in response to Penate's lawsuit, that she was focused on prosecuting Farak and not defendants, like Penate, whose criminal cases were affected by Farak's misconduct. In the aftermath, the court felt it necessary to make clear that "no prosecutorhas the authority to decline to disclose exculpatory information.". email highlighted in the Velis-Merrigan report. Robertson rejected Kaczmarek's claims she should not be held responsible for the turning over of exculpatory evidence because she was not part of the "prosecution team" in Penate's case. She played as the starting guard for Portsmouth High Schools freshman team. | Farak also had an apparent obsession for her therapists husband, as she was reported to have a folder that shed put together about him, documenting her obsession. State officials rushed to condemn her loudly and publicly. The Chemists and the Cover-Up - Reason.com Lets find out. Why Won't Maryland Sell Me a Goddamn Beer? Joseph . Netflixs How to Fix a Drug Scandal Story: 5 Fast Facts. Who Is Sonja Farak From Netflix Docu-Series How To Fix A Drug Scandal READ NEXT: Netflixs How to Fix a Drug Scandal Story: 5 Fast Facts, Sonja Farak: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know, Please review our privacy policy here: https://heavy.com/privacy-policy/, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. NORTHAMPTON Sonja J. Farak told a nurse at the Western Massachusetts Penate's suit said Kaczmarek withheld evidence that Farak used drugs at the lab for longer than the Massachusetts attorney general's office first claimed, and that he would not have been imprisoned based on tainted evidence. Kaczmarek had obtained the evidence at issue while she was prosecuting Farak on state charges of tampering with evidence and drug possession. It had no surveillance cameras, laughable security on evidence safes, and "laissez faire" management, which the state inspector general determined was the "most glaring factor that led to the Dookhan crisis. Grand Jury Transcript - Sonja Farak - September 16, 2015 A year later, in October 2014, prosecutors relented, granting access to the full evidence in Farak's case to attorney Luke Ryan. El 6 de enero de 2014, Farak se declar culpable de los cargos en su contra. | State chemist may have affected more drug cases than previously known "We shouldn't be in the position of having to be saying, 'Don't close your eyes to the duration and scope of misconduct that may affect a whole lot of cases,'" the exasperated Massachusetts chief justice told prosecutors during oral arguments. Thanks to Farak's testimony and those diary worksheets, we now know that, soon after joining the Amherst lab in 2004, Farak started skimming from the methamphetamine "standard," an undiluted oil used as a reference against which suspected meth samples are compared. Faraks therapist, Anna Kogan, wrote in her notes that Farak was worried about Nikki finding out about her addiction as well as the possible legal issues if she were ever caught. In the series, it's explained that Farak loved the energy the meth gave her. Inwardly though, Sonja was struggling.