A compromised crime lab might be more endemic than an exception, and according to defense attorney Aram James, points to a larger flaw in the mechanics of the criminal justice system.
Recent revelations of a compromised crime lab in San Francisco has brought scrutiny and criticism to the San Francisco Police Department and District Attorney’s office. Investigations by oversight agencies as well as the media have shown that the lab had mixed up DNA sample, concealed criticisms from the American Society of Crime Lab Directors, and had insufficient security – with doors to the facility being left open, leaving DNA potentially exposed to contamination, opening up challenges to the evidentiary chain of custody and a variety of other attacks on its scientific reliability.
But while all attention might be focused on the inadequacies of one crime lab, the problems found at the San Francisco lab should be prompting counties and cities across the country to examine their own crime labs, and challenge a more fundamental flaw in our system – the acceptance of prosecutors’ “science” as truth.
As a former public defender of 25 years, and having observed criminal cases across the country, I strongly suspect that crimes labs all over this state and country are equally as bad, if not worse, than the San Francisco Crime Lab, as depicted in the recent San Francisco Weekly’s cover story entitled “Missing Links.”
The exposé should be a call to action by the community at large impacted by the criminal justice system to become more aware about how the state/prosecution routinely attempts to get over on our communities with junk science — from phony gang experts, to pseudo drug experts, to drugs that haven't been tested or adequately challenged by the defense, to bad DNA results.
What the public often does not see is the process leading up to the presentation of evidence before it hits the courtroom, and the surprising non-existent standards required. A rookie cop, just out of the police academy, instantly becomes the expert of choice, on the cheap, for the convenience of the District Attorney and courts on issues as wide-ranging as what constitutes possession for sale, to what constitutes usable quantity, to who is a gang member versus someone who simply wears the youth fashions of the day.
It's not just the prosecution and police that have gotten over on us. I put equal blame and responsibility for this mess of a criminal justice system on the often impotent, by choice, defense bar for frequently and systemically failing to take on this bad/junk/fraudulent science and/or for failing to call defense experts to rebut the steady stream of junk science put on by the prosecution in this county, state, and country.
We should never have our community members stipulate (agree to) to drug results and or any other forms of so-called scientific evidence. A community that cares in the proper defense of a defendant, and the attorneys that represent them, need to force the prosecution to prove every link in the chain of the evidence (including the reliability and integrity of their so-called infallible science), if they want to convict our clients.
Too often (in fact almost without exception), I have seen defense attorneys stipulate that the substance the police have seized from our clients' person, cars, homes, etc., is the drug or contraband the police claim it is — without putting the prosecution and their labs through their hoops and forcing the state to prove — through good science — that the contraband is what they claim it is.
Part of the mentality I have observed — up close and personal in the courtroom as a public defender — is defense attorneys stipulating away their clients’ rights for their (the attorney's) convenience. Or they simply do not want to be perceived as rocking the boat in the courtroom — all to the extreme detriment of the client and their families.
The public defender administrators who allow their line attorneys to commit this crime against our communities basic due process rights must be called to account.
You can be sure if it were the loved ones of these attorneys/administrators facing the same criminal injustice system there would be no stipulations to the state's tests/evidence. And you can be sure that no expense would be spared to fight off the prosecution’s case/evidence and routine practice of overcharging our clients in hopes of extracting a forced plea bargain.
Our communities will accept nothing less than the same measure of due process and equal protection that the lawyers would demand if it were their life and liberty on the line.
Going forward, communities and advocates interested in bringing integrity to the criminal justice system must insist on touring our crime labs with our public servants/district attorneys so we can become conversant with the language of their legitimate scientific evidence. But we must be equally aware of where the system/crime labs have failed us, and as a result, imprisoned us unjustly. Knowledge is power, and now it is incumbent on us to obtain that knowledge.
As the court system collapses under its own weight, exacerbated by a lack of resources, we need to put the pressure on by forcing the prosecution to prove their cases, no matter how expensive and system draining the tests/labs and trials are to the state.
If the community demands the tests (and demands that our attorneys demand the tests), the experts, and all the other rights that our clients are rightfully entitled to, we will start to see that the system will grudgingly give our clients the justice they deserve. Not because the system wants to, but because once we know our rights, they literally can no longer afford to prosecute our clients for the charges and prison sentences we have for too long assumed and taken for granted that we could not challenge.
Now that the rabbit is out of the hat, it’s time we take back our criminal justice system.
Aram James is a retired Santa Clara County Public Defender, and co-founder of Silicon Valley De-Bug’s Albert Cobarrubias Justice Project.
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Comments
We're on the same wavelength! I’ve taken depositions of so-called expert psychologists and found out their work is so bad it amounts to a hoax on the court. Yes, they may have the credentials and license, but the work can still be a hoax. Obviously, no other lawyer ever challenged these “experts,” or they wouldn't continue to put out such garbage. If the lawyers did their jobs, this couldn't continue. The lawyers need to remember basic rules: (1) Know more than the expert you’re cross-examining. (Hint: That means study, study, study.) and (2) Reality is knowable, including “expert” reports. Of course, my work is in the family court, but the approach should be the same in any court.
This is a breath of fresh air. I read this and I once again believe in the thrilling potential of this country to be fair to ALL people.
I was recently told by the Public Defender of Mendocino County that I was "not a common criminal." I can't imagine that such a statement is good for anyone who seems to fit that stereotype.
Our criminal "justice" system needs all the fixing Aram James talks about in his article and then some.
By Chuck Jagoda
• January 25, 2011, 6:32 a.m.
I agree whole-heartedly with Mr. James' assessment of the Criminal Justice System in San Francisco. I personally worked at the Hall of Justice in SF for two years which was long enough to observe the laxed procedural attitudes and arbitrary decisions that the majority of the employed staff executed. This type of behavior was apparent in all departments including crime labs, the police departments' handling of police reports, and in other iimportant pre-trial clerk and court proceedings offices. If defendants are to receive a fair and just trial, the preliminary procedures for those trials must be carried out righteously and affectively with guaranteed efficiency.
By Michele James
• January 25, 2011, 2:56 p.m.
Pls give this article to Mary Greenwood SJ Public Defender so that she can give one of these articles to each of her attorneys.
By doug minkler
• January 26, 2011, 1:17 a.m.
You may also be interested in the following:
"Science Rules the FBI Should Obey,: by Roger Koppl, and Dan Krane
http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=2710
Thank you Mr. James for factually reminding us that regardless of the reverence we might have for the law and judicial system, there can be faulty human elements in the system -- and that calls for greater questioning of authority than ever before.
There is clear ancdotal evidence that incentives somehow have crept into the system compelling prosecuters to abandon their role as seekers of justice to become groomers of "winning statistics." The same statistical gymnastics has tempted a few Police Investigators to doctor police reports and go for a "win" vs. go for just the facts. The idea that "the ends justified the means", or that "a few innocent people get locked up for the greater good" because "most" of the convicted are really "bad guys" does not fit with the American freedoms that I grew up believing were solidly in place.
Thanks Mr. James for the timely reminder to keep our eyes wide open and be open to new truths. Perhaps we need to spend some of our "jail money" on Justice, but that is a bigger topic. Thank you for a clear and factual entry point for this larger issue.
Tim Gray
By Timothy Gray
• January 27, 2011, 6:55 a.m.
Until the police, district attorneys, coroners and crime lab analysts are held accountable for their actions nothing will change.
Somehow the justice system has been able to convince the law makers and the general public that they, members of the justice system, are as pure as the driven snow and would never ever violate someone by placing them in prison while using falsified evidence.
The system needs a different entity involved in the onset of any case for there exists an inherent conflict of interest on the part of the arresting agency and the prosecuting agency in any given case.
The system is called adversarial for a reason.
Once an arrest is made, the cops and the prosecutors will do everything they need to win the case regardless of the facts. As such they cease pursuing truth, and focus on strengthening their case while weakening their opponent’s case.
There needs to be an entity whose job is not to prosecute or defend those charged with a crime, but to solely determine the truth of the case. One would think that would be the Government’s crime lab personnel.
Time and again has proven this not to be the case. In the case of the People v. Ciampi, the Santa Clara County Crime Lab deliberately chose not to look at evidence which would have verified that officers tampered with evidence. The evidence that the crime lab did look at still pointed to the fact that officers tampered with evidence, however the crime lab deliberately came chose not to state so on their reports.
If the investigators who put together the evidence that convicted and killed Todd Willingham were held criminally accountable for at least gross negligence causing the death of an innocent man, then our system would improve.
http://camerontoddwillingham.com/
There needs to be an entity in our justice system that has unfettered access to all of the evidence and all of the witnesses in any given case at any given time in order to simply reveal TRUTH.
When that happens citizens will not be over charged with crimes and the innocent will not be convicted of crimes.
Tony Ciampi
By Tony Ciampi
• January 27, 2011, 12:07 p.m.
I followed the SF crime lab issue on the news. I was shocked that so many 'good guys' who with premeditation wreak havoc on other people's lives by providing false information were not held criminally liable. Maybe it is due to the fact that the crime lab and the police are on the same team, and in this fraternity you don't prosecute your own.
Perhaps we need to adopt the view that the police, the DA, and their co-horts are not superhuman, they're fallible, and they have motivations (like all human) beyond justice. And an effective system to prosecute their wrong doing is key in the justice system.
And I believe the first place to start is in dissolving the unions for police and other public "safety" employees. If they don't have this safety net to fall on, perhaps they will have to be more diligent in their work.
By Ben Huang
• January 27, 2011, 8:35 p.m.
Aram,
I personally want to thank you for this article. It is to the point and so true! This article is one the best articles I have read about this drug lab/expert issue. Good work!
By Doug Fort
• January 27, 2011, 8:44 p.m.
Aram, I agree with your points. I think that most people tend to place too much trust in bureaucracies because it's just easier. I mean, who wants to endlessly study what the laws, codes or policies of any given company are, to make sure they're not getting cheated? It's just easier to trust that companies/governments are doing the right thing and hope for the best. I think it's hard for people to step outside the box and challenge the truths that they normally take for granted because it takes bravery and resolution to speak up and challenge normal conventions. Good for you for being willing to go the extra mile to see things done fairly and correctly even if it takes so much courage and tenacity to do so.
By Robin Minkler
• January 27, 2011, 11:49 p.m.
Hi Aram,
A very informative and compelling article which I agree should be mandatory reading for public defender agencies across the country. Another great point you make which should be underscored is the need to get this information out to the public who may become unwitting victims of the unscrupulous crime labs/expert witnesses system. Legal community advocates should be armed with this information to readily disseminate to criminal suspects who can then attempt to make their defense attorneys to be more accountable to them in their representation.
Great work!
By Iris Baly
• January 28, 2011, 3:44 p.m.
Aram James makes some very good points, and I wish that the problems were more specific, and not so widespread, deep, and systemic. Recently, we held a rally calling for the separation of corporation and state, a 28th Constitutional Amendment, since our government now is so subservient to the wealthiest,most powerful corporations and lobbyists who virtually run the country and are in the process of legalizing crime, fraud, murder, theft, robbing our country, the world and murdering the planet. I consider myself to be a media activist, an organizer, and I host a radio show and am in the process of organizing a benefit for victims of the catastrophic Gulf Oil Disaster [entitled Oilpocalypse Now - which will also include the film Black Wave - The Legacy of Exxon Valdez- Exxon raked the people of Cordova over in the courts after the disastrous spill which wiped out species and caused irreparable harm. The Supreme Court ruled against the 5 billion dollar settlement, knocking it down to $500,000,000 - a fraction of the hard cost of the economic losses to the fishing town. BP is following the same modus operandi, making and breaking promises; saying one thing and doing another.]. BP has the power to get the President of the US to do a photo op in Florida on the beach with his daughter to sell the message that the ocean is safe, and to eat the seafood and claim that the seafood is safe. While scientists discover high levels of toxic chemicals in the seafood, the FDA raises the bar astronomically high so that the industry can sell the tainted seafood. People sick and dying from the toxic dispersant Corexit protest its liberal use and application from airplanes flying over their homes. The government tells BP to stop it. BP says we won't and the government says "Well then, it's ok, here is how you can get an exemption so that you can apply it legally..." The Supreme Court is worse than a joke in rulings that are so flagrantly unjust and in violation of the Constitution that they simply take ones breath away- like allowing corporations to "buy elections." Then there is Goldman Sachs responsible for hundreds of trillions of dollars of fraud, control fraud, legalized at the highest levels. At the same time, cities are broke and figuring out new ways to raise revenue by aggressively ticketing parked cars, or any of us that commits minor infractions in the driving code, with huge penalties. It is extortion- pure and simple. We have a country of, by, for the rich. The corruption is systemic- particularly in the "justice" better named "Just Us" system.
"I have read your article and it was very interesting and powerful, job well done! It's not about justice at all but about how fast they can keep that wheel turning."
By Donette Gamblin
• January 29, 2011, 11:05 p.m.
I applaud Aram James's article and Carol Brouillet's comments. The "just us" system is and has been broken longer than most of us have been alive. I'm not sure how we can "fix" it other than to "fire them all" and start over.
Or;
One evidence lab, one court, one city at a time.
By challenging ALL evidence brought to bear by the "State" or "prosecution", obviously or usually the same entity is my understanding of the article.
In reference to Carols traffic tickets...
I received a citation for towing a trailer 8 mph over the posted 55 mph limit for "towing". The normal posted speed for someone not towing is 70 mph on I-5. I agree, I was speeding, but....
The non-negotiable "fine", "bail", or, "extortion" for towing a trailer 8 miles over the posted speed limit was $400. And this was in another county (Glenn) 100 miles from where I reside.
So they know you will just "pay the fine and go away".
How can anyone that is not a member of the "just us" society, afford to take off work to travel back to their county, for a court appearance that will net you $0 in savings and cost you a days pay, plus gas and wear and tear on your car? AND a nights stay at a hotel unless you don't mind getting up at 04:00 am to drive there that morning and risk a breakdown or accident because the time to appear is always 9:30 am.
Miss that date and time and you could be arrested.
Seems a little steep, $400. That CHP officer should have just used his gun and took it from my wallet on the spot.
Could have saved himself a lot of paperwork. Think of the interest the State or county could have made with that $400 in their account for that extra month! Sorry, I didn't mean to give CHP any ideas....
The Ohio Highway Patrol collects the "bail" by credit cards, or cash, on the spot since the 1980's.
(Guess how I knew that)
The "Protect and Serve" creed or slogan most law enforcement officials adhere to is no longer meant for us, it sounds good but it's seems it's more to protect and serve their own asses at "the peoples" expense.
The new "slogan" they should use is "guilty until proven innocent" And good luck with that "innocent" part.
Atta boy Aram! You and Carol keep up the excellent work!
By Kerry Hall
• January 30, 2011, 9:32 a.m.
Aram, I would like to personally thank you so much for this article because of your experience and history - you've seen corruption first handed. Federal, State and County Officials will do any and everything to get a conviction to keep low-income and uneducated men/women incarcerated by using pressure to take a plea bargain when in reality - there's either nothing there or the suspect is pressured by his/her Court-Appointed Pubic Defender to rush to judgment. I've worked with De-Bug and you many times to assist me with my family and I appreciate the knowledge and wisdom I've received to help my loved one out. Aram, if I had not seek your organization out my family would have more restrictions than they have now. One of my son's is restricted of wearing certain clothing because supposedly it represents a "Gang Attire." Another son sits in DVI today because his Court-Appointed Public Defender didn't care about him or the injustice - he just wanted to lessen his caseload. My son was fearful of getting more time and just took the deal to move on. Yes, I agree not only with this article I agree with you because of the work you are doing today to expose the injustice.
By Fellissa Richard
• January 30, 2011, 11:58 a.m.
Your article is very well written and is eye opening, Mr. James. I am surprised these people can sleep at night. Now, will those who are paid or called to be in charge of the system have the courage or the competency to take the lead in correcting these injustices?
By Sam Ho
• February 1, 2011, 8:58 a.m.
Thanks for publicizing what most of us who work in the system have known for years. The more attention brought to the junk "science," the better the likelihood those within the system will move to action.
By Rosemary McCarthy
• February 1, 2011, 3:15 p.m.
This is unbelieveable, that we spend so much effort in locking people up, and so little effort in real rehabilitation.
Studies continuously show that the US Justice system isn't fair or just to those without financial means.
In the era of fiscal responsibility, the US Governement would do well with rethinking the RAILROAD to incarceration..
By Keith
• February 1, 2011, 4:31 p.m.
Aram - Getting more justice into the system is an extremely challenging project! I hope you can succeed! First, as you and others point out, the incentives are wrong. We, the public, and the press put so much pressure on prosecutors to find someone guilty when there is a serious crime, that naming someone as the criminal becomes more important than finding the real criminal. Are there any consequences for convicting the wrong person? I am sure there are some honest mistakes, but often the mistakes are carelessness or intentional blindness to some of the facts. Can you get the incentives adjusted?
Another big problem I see all the time: many of the people I talk to do not really believe that a 'minority' person might go to jail for the same crime that a 'white' person would either go free or into rehabilitation. They believe in a fair justice system, but they also believe minorities commit many more crimes. Can you educate the public to the fundamental unfairness, at all levels, that we have built into the system over the years? I worry that without support from the general public it will be difficult to make the needed changes. Good luck!
By Ann
• February 2, 2011, 4:52 p.m.
All politics begin in the community; act locally, speak globally. For evil to succeed, all a good man need do is keep quiet. Thank you for questioning authority and bringing attention to a local problem with national implications.
Bravo Aram James!
Danielle Martell
Palo Alto Community Advocate, and
former Palo Alto City Council candidate
By dm
• February 2, 2011, 5:18 p.m.
Aram: I have just read the comments to your amazing article. The great responses tell me that there is a sleeping giant that might be wakened if all of us were to initially pool our weight in breaking up one part of the criminal justice system.
Tonight (Feb.1,2011) on Public television was a Frontline (I
think) expose of the coroner system and how inexperienced,incompetent, untrained coroners add to the mess-up in the
system. I couldn't watch all of it because of time pressure.
This brings me to your hard-hitting article on the crime labs and how prosecuting and defense attorneys often use the incompetence of the crime lab to their advantage. Just like Enron, Ken Lay could not have done what he did without help from Wall Street, board members, bank regulators,CPA's, etc. I am thinking that, whenever you get back to it, you might go more into detail about some of the heinous mistakes made in the crime labs and the issue of
poor management. Then draw from your vast experience and knowledge why this is allowed to continue. You've got one part of the pie already, the attorneys.
What about the DA, what about the mayor, the supervisors,the city councils. In Santa Clara County the county is
supposed to get reports regarding the lab, for example. What does it do with these reports? File them without reading them?. Maybe those with similar experiences can add to such an article.
Sound like a plan?
Betsy Wolf-Graves.De-Bug volunteer and
CPA member
By Betsy Wolf-Graves
• February 2, 2011, 9:55 p.m.
It's refreshing to see someone as comitted to justice as Aram James. His cry for vigilance in forensic science is worthwhile for the entire law enforcement community. And, perhaps as he points our, partial blame may be found in the defense bench as well.
By Robert Petty
• February 3, 2011, 7:17 p.m.
Hey Aram, now that you have pulled the rabbit out of the hat, and you have opened our eyes to see how deep the rabbit hole goes. We must continue to enforce this knowledge in the criminal justice system. Attorneys do has little work has possible when it come to a good defense, as you said. With this information a defender can make sure his/ or her Attorney will take those extra steps to ensure a balance defense. We also have to lay some responsibility on the Supervisors, they should expect the Attorneys under their watch have this standard ingrained in their defense, but unfortunately it is not happening.
Aram I am so glade you wrote this article, you really are telling it like it is. It is a shame that defendants must have some level of education in the law in order to have a just out come for in their defense.
Thanks for keeping it real.
Gail Noble- Silicon Valley De-Bug/ Albert Cobarrubias Justice Project
By Gail Noble
• February 5, 2011, 6:19 p.m.
This is a wonderful article. Thank you for painting a clear picture on what many of think about or have directly experienced; that the application of the law is loosely threaded together by criminal justice procedures that have no grounding in reality. We need more people like Mr. James to remind us how damaging the criminal justice system is to our commmunities.
Ali RahnomaSilicon Valley De-Bug/ Albert Cobarrubias Justice Project
By Ali Rahnoma
• February 9, 2011, 1:54 p.m.
I served with Aram in Santa Clara County. When proper defense policy is followed, wrongful convictions are prevented. Criminal cases are not similar to civil matters, criminal cases are the true test of our Constitution. Defense attorneys must always remember their client is not the employer paying their salary, the client is not even the person charged. The client is the Constitution.
By Zacharias Ledet
• February 9, 2011, 2:30 p.m.
Aram:
You make a devastating case against the so-called justice system. It makes for frightening reading. You point out that the systemic problem goes much beyond just malfeasance at the crime lab.
However, I am unclear as to what real solutions and actions you are proposing. Perhaps you will write a follow-up article detailing concrete steps that concerned citizens can undertake to reform the system.
It doesn't suffice to say "Our communities will accept nothing less than the same measure of due process and equal protection that the lawyers would demand if it were their life and liberty on the line." Most of my "community" for instance has not and probably will not come into contact with the system. I venture that few if any are even aware, let alone exercised enough to even write their public servants about these issues. If defendants rights are routinely stipulated away by their public defenders it presumably happens because the defendant does not know enough to insist otherwise to their public defender. Is there a code of ethical conduct for public defenders that is actually adhered to and enforced? If judges routinely accept/allow "expert" testimony by complete novices are they not to be held to account as well?
Regards,
Shankar
By Shankar Ramamoorthy
• February 10, 2011, 6:30 a.m.
Aram, you are a powerful attorney that many DA's have feared. This article hopefully will open up the eyes of all lazy dumptruck attorneys on both sides. You would think with the amount of resources and technology we have now a days, "junk science" should not be happening if evidence was handled correctly.
By Sean & Ann James
• February 10, 2011, 8:22 p.m.
Dear Aram
This is an informative, interesting, well written report about the short comings of the criminal justice system in our state. A functional, effective, criminal justice system is here to serve the community and promote public safety. What’s missing is the cooperative problem-solving desire among the various departments which has led to inefficiencies in the use of everyone's time and resources. What we need is a process that creates an incredible opportunity to replace the old systems with new hallmarks, cooperation, accountability, integrity, responsibility, common values, professionalism of the responsible parties involved
By Hans-Peter Tiemann
• February 12, 2011, 9:32 p.m.
Once upon a time a great deal of us took our families for summer vacations in Mexico to later share wonderful stories. Those were also the days when the defense bar in California was something to be reckoned with. The pendulum swung to the age of darkness, our prisons have filled at the expense and sacrifice of health, education and youth recreational programs. We are now faced with similar conditions of the historical great depression. The “war” on drugs was a farce that has made drug dealing profitable like never before. Addictions are health problems, which are best resolved by health professionals. California reports record numbers of prisoners, just at the State level serving out their terms, without taking into account the 58 county jails and the Federal Penitentiaries within our state. Although everything seems hopeless, let us remember that the pendulum never stops swinging and it is now time for us to again come together and reform our broken down systems. Not much different from the repeal of the Volstead Act (National Prohibition Act), are the changes needed. The defense bar must again become active, bold and responsive to the needs of our people. We must all do our bit and attend community meetings, to address our needs. In the words of Benjamin Franklin 'Gentlemen we must all hang together or we shall most assuredly all hang separately'
As lemmings fall to the sea, so do the masses run to buy into the State’s perspective on those accused in the criminal justice system (i.e., they would not have been arrested or charged if they were not guilty). No longer does the State have the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, as the prosecutors hold the upper hand against the prosecuted. Many are caught in this legal quagmire, without a voice, because the public-at-large ignores their duties as jurors and citizens, instead rallying to an “off with their heads” philosophy.
Knowledge is power and change in within the hands of the people – look to recent events in Egypt and Tunisia for the power of people to effect remarkable change. The judiciary is a small part of the legal process, in view of the masses of accused and prosecuted; sometimes corrupt, sometimes without power. Your tax dollars fund the prosecution, as well as the judiciary, but there is no balance in this funding process. Many believe that a “felony” is a commission of a violent, dangerous crime, when in fact the length of punishment defines it. Logic would lead us to believe that if the punishment is longer, then the crime must have been violent or otherwise extreme – unfortunately, such is not the case. Those often-mentioned “technicalities” are your rights under the Constitution, instead voters believe that can undo Constitutional rights with 51% of the turnout in agreement. In spite of the fact that California is more than three years backlogged in processing DNA samples, from convicted criminals, now the State has the right to collect and process DNA samples upon arrest for non-violent felonies (not conviction) thanks to ignorant voters
We have enough laws – interpretation and proper enforcement are the problems. Legislators often enact new laws in a knee-jerk reaction to a sensational event. California has the largest prison population of its existence, with a cry for more funding of jails, prisons, and prosecutions. Many serve life sentences for non-violent offenses, with a cost to taxpayers of approximately $45,000 per year, per inmate. The public needs to become aware of the true situation of this system and rise up to protect our rights and ensure that the founding goals are achieved.
By Rosemary Greenlaw
• February 17, 2011, 9:39 a.m.
this should be on everyones wall
By cesar
• February 17, 2011, 4 p.m.
Dear Aram James,
Thanks for your detailed article regarding the use of crime labs as the "end all and fix all" in our justice communities.
The truth of the matter is, as you have stated, the problem brought into the sun light at and with our law enforcement Crime Labs. The fact that many if not all Crime Labs should be investigated, cleaned up, and challenged at every corner needs to be translated into every language.
Having been witness personally to murder trials, I have seen first hand how poorly, important evidence is handled and "lost". It seemed that evidence had been thrown out because of poor collection, investigation, and tracking techniques. Not to mention the time a very, very expensive watch was entered into the evidence of a case and then mysteriously was missing from the evidence locker.
You are correct that our youth are being plea bargained into JAIL and later POVERTY with DESPAIR to follow.
Our Public Defender are to blame as you have correctly pointed out - allowing and accepting poor workmanship is laziness plain and simple.
Danny Garza
By Danny Garza
• February 17, 2011, 4:33 p.m.
Aram,
Thank you for confirming for me the belief that there just might be people out there with their eyes wide open and hearts ablaze for REAL justice. Thank you for remembering that we should not be judged by the color of our skin, but by the strength of our character.
By Shauna Hardy
• March 6, 2011, 6:11 p.m.
Comments
We're on the same wavelength! I’ve taken depositions of so-called expert psychologists and found out their work is so bad it amounts to a hoax on the court. Yes, they may have the credentials and license, but the work can still be a hoax. Obviously, no other lawyer ever challenged these “experts,” or they wouldn't continue to put out such garbage. If the lawyers did their jobs, this couldn't continue. The lawyers need to remember basic rules: (1) Know more than the expert you’re cross-examining. (Hint: That means study, study, study.) and (2) Reality is knowable, including “expert” reports. Of course, my work is in the family court, but the approach should be the same in any court.
This is a breath of fresh air. I read this and I once again believe in the thrilling potential of this country to be fair to ALL people.
I was recently told by the Public Defender of Mendocino County that I was "not a common criminal." I can't imagine that such a statement is good for anyone who seems to fit that stereotype.
Our criminal "justice" system needs all the fixing Aram James talks about in his article and then some.
I agree whole-heartedly with Mr. James' assessment of the Criminal Justice System in San Francisco. I personally worked at the Hall of Justice in SF for two years which was long enough to observe the laxed procedural attitudes and arbitrary decisions that the majority of the employed staff executed. This type of behavior was apparent in all departments including crime labs, the police departments' handling of police reports, and in other iimportant pre-trial clerk and court proceedings offices. If defendants are to receive a fair and just trial, the preliminary procedures for those trials must be carried out righteously and affectively with guaranteed efficiency.
Pls give this article to Mary Greenwood SJ Public Defender so that she can give one of these articles to each of her attorneys.
You may also be interested in the following:
"Science Rules the FBI Should Obey,: by Roger Koppl, and Dan Krane http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=2710
Thank you Mr. James for factually reminding us that regardless of the reverence we might have for the law and judicial system, there can be faulty human elements in the system -- and that calls for greater questioning of authority than ever before.
There is clear ancdotal evidence that incentives somehow have crept into the system compelling prosecuters to abandon their role as seekers of justice to become groomers of "winning statistics." The same statistical gymnastics has tempted a few Police Investigators to doctor police reports and go for a "win" vs. go for just the facts. The idea that "the ends justified the means", or that "a few innocent people get locked up for the greater good" because "most" of the convicted are really "bad guys" does not fit with the American freedoms that I grew up believing were solidly in place.
Thanks Mr. James for the timely reminder to keep our eyes wide open and be open to new truths. Perhaps we need to spend some of our "jail money" on Justice, but that is a bigger topic. Thank you for a clear and factual entry point for this larger issue.
Tim Gray
Until the police, district attorneys, coroners and crime lab analysts are held accountable for their actions nothing will change.
Somehow the justice system has been able to convince the law makers and the general public that they, members of the justice system, are as pure as the driven snow and would never ever violate someone by placing them in prison while using falsified evidence.
The system needs a different entity involved in the onset of any case for there exists an inherent conflict of interest on the part of the arresting agency and the prosecuting agency in any given case.
The system is called adversarial for a reason.
Once an arrest is made, the cops and the prosecutors will do everything they need to win the case regardless of the facts. As such they cease pursuing truth, and focus on strengthening their case while weakening their opponent’s case.
There needs to be an entity whose job is not to prosecute or defend those charged with a crime, but to solely determine the truth of the case. One would think that would be the Government’s crime lab personnel.
Time and again has proven this not to be the case. In the case of the People v. Ciampi, the Santa Clara County Crime Lab deliberately chose not to look at evidence which would have verified that officers tampered with evidence. The evidence that the crime lab did look at still pointed to the fact that officers tampered with evidence, however the crime lab deliberately came chose not to state so on their reports.
If the investigators who put together the evidence that convicted and killed Todd Willingham were held criminally accountable for at least gross negligence causing the death of an innocent man, then our system would improve. http://camerontoddwillingham.com/
There needs to be an entity in our justice system that has unfettered access to all of the evidence and all of the witnesses in any given case at any given time in order to simply reveal TRUTH.
When that happens citizens will not be over charged with crimes and the innocent will not be convicted of crimes.
Tony Ciampi
I followed the SF crime lab issue on the news. I was shocked that so many 'good guys' who with premeditation wreak havoc on other people's lives by providing false information were not held criminally liable. Maybe it is due to the fact that the crime lab and the police are on the same team, and in this fraternity you don't prosecute your own.
Perhaps we need to adopt the view that the police, the DA, and their co-horts are not superhuman, they're fallible, and they have motivations (like all human) beyond justice. And an effective system to prosecute their wrong doing is key in the justice system.
And I believe the first place to start is in dissolving the unions for police and other public "safety" employees. If they don't have this safety net to fall on, perhaps they will have to be more diligent in their work.
Aram,
I personally want to thank you for this article. It is to the point and so true! This article is one the best articles I have read about this drug lab/expert issue. Good work!
Aram, I agree with your points. I think that most people tend to place too much trust in bureaucracies because it's just easier. I mean, who wants to endlessly study what the laws, codes or policies of any given company are, to make sure they're not getting cheated? It's just easier to trust that companies/governments are doing the right thing and hope for the best. I think it's hard for people to step outside the box and challenge the truths that they normally take for granted because it takes bravery and resolution to speak up and challenge normal conventions. Good for you for being willing to go the extra mile to see things done fairly and correctly even if it takes so much courage and tenacity to do so.
Hi Aram, A very informative and compelling article which I agree should be mandatory reading for public defender agencies across the country. Another great point you make which should be underscored is the need to get this information out to the public who may become unwitting victims of the unscrupulous crime labs/expert witnesses system. Legal community advocates should be armed with this information to readily disseminate to criminal suspects who can then attempt to make their defense attorneys to be more accountable to them in their representation. Great work!
Aram James makes some very good points, and I wish that the problems were more specific, and not so widespread, deep, and systemic. Recently, we held a rally calling for the separation of corporation and state, a 28th Constitutional Amendment, since our government now is so subservient to the wealthiest,most powerful corporations and lobbyists who virtually run the country and are in the process of legalizing crime, fraud, murder, theft, robbing our country, the world and murdering the planet. I consider myself to be a media activist, an organizer, and I host a radio show and am in the process of organizing a benefit for victims of the catastrophic Gulf Oil Disaster [entitled Oilpocalypse Now - which will also include the film Black Wave - The Legacy of Exxon Valdez- Exxon raked the people of Cordova over in the courts after the disastrous spill which wiped out species and caused irreparable harm. The Supreme Court ruled against the 5 billion dollar settlement, knocking it down to $500,000,000 - a fraction of the hard cost of the economic losses to the fishing town. BP is following the same modus operandi, making and breaking promises; saying one thing and doing another.]. BP has the power to get the President of the US to do a photo op in Florida on the beach with his daughter to sell the message that the ocean is safe, and to eat the seafood and claim that the seafood is safe. While scientists discover high levels of toxic chemicals in the seafood, the FDA raises the bar astronomically high so that the industry can sell the tainted seafood. People sick and dying from the toxic dispersant Corexit protest its liberal use and application from airplanes flying over their homes. The government tells BP to stop it. BP says we won't and the government says "Well then, it's ok, here is how you can get an exemption so that you can apply it legally..." The Supreme Court is worse than a joke in rulings that are so flagrantly unjust and in violation of the Constitution that they simply take ones breath away- like allowing corporations to "buy elections." Then there is Goldman Sachs responsible for hundreds of trillions of dollars of fraud, control fraud, legalized at the highest levels. At the same time, cities are broke and figuring out new ways to raise revenue by aggressively ticketing parked cars, or any of us that commits minor infractions in the driving code, with huge penalties. It is extortion- pure and simple. We have a country of, by, for the rich. The corruption is systemic- particularly in the "justice" better named "Just Us" system.
"I have read your article and it was very interesting and powerful, job well done! It's not about justice at all but about how fast they can keep that wheel turning."
I applaud Aram James's article and Carol Brouillet's comments. The "just us" system is and has been broken longer than most of us have been alive. I'm not sure how we can "fix" it other than to "fire them all" and start over. Or; One evidence lab, one court, one city at a time. By challenging ALL evidence brought to bear by the "State" or "prosecution", obviously or usually the same entity is my understanding of the article. In reference to Carols traffic tickets... I received a citation for towing a trailer 8 mph over the posted 55 mph limit for "towing". The normal posted speed for someone not towing is 70 mph on I-5. I agree, I was speeding, but.... The non-negotiable "fine", "bail", or, "extortion" for towing a trailer 8 miles over the posted speed limit was $400. And this was in another county (Glenn) 100 miles from where I reside. So they know you will just "pay the fine and go away". How can anyone that is not a member of the "just us" society, afford to take off work to travel back to their county, for a court appearance that will net you $0 in savings and cost you a days pay, plus gas and wear and tear on your car? AND a nights stay at a hotel unless you don't mind getting up at 04:00 am to drive there that morning and risk a breakdown or accident because the time to appear is always 9:30 am. Miss that date and time and you could be arrested.
Seems a little steep, $400. That CHP officer should have just used his gun and took it from my wallet on the spot. Could have saved himself a lot of paperwork. Think of the interest the State or county could have made with that $400 in their account for that extra month! Sorry, I didn't mean to give CHP any ideas.... The Ohio Highway Patrol collects the "bail" by credit cards, or cash, on the spot since the 1980's. (Guess how I knew that)
The "Protect and Serve" creed or slogan most law enforcement officials adhere to is no longer meant for us, it sounds good but it's seems it's more to protect and serve their own asses at "the peoples" expense. The new "slogan" they should use is "guilty until proven innocent" And good luck with that "innocent" part. Atta boy Aram! You and Carol keep up the excellent work!
Aram, I would like to personally thank you so much for this article because of your experience and history - you've seen corruption first handed. Federal, State and County Officials will do any and everything to get a conviction to keep low-income and uneducated men/women incarcerated by using pressure to take a plea bargain when in reality - there's either nothing there or the suspect is pressured by his/her Court-Appointed Pubic Defender to rush to judgment. I've worked with De-Bug and you many times to assist me with my family and I appreciate the knowledge and wisdom I've received to help my loved one out. Aram, if I had not seek your organization out my family would have more restrictions than they have now. One of my son's is restricted of wearing certain clothing because supposedly it represents a "Gang Attire." Another son sits in DVI today because his Court-Appointed Public Defender didn't care about him or the injustice - he just wanted to lessen his caseload. My son was fearful of getting more time and just took the deal to move on. Yes, I agree not only with this article I agree with you because of the work you are doing today to expose the injustice.
Your article is very well written and is eye opening, Mr. James. I am surprised these people can sleep at night. Now, will those who are paid or called to be in charge of the system have the courage or the competency to take the lead in correcting these injustices?
Thanks for publicizing what most of us who work in the system have known for years. The more attention brought to the junk "science," the better the likelihood those within the system will move to action.
This is unbelieveable, that we spend so much effort in locking people up, and so little effort in real rehabilitation.
Studies continuously show that the US Justice system isn't fair or just to those without financial means.
In the era of fiscal responsibility, the US Governement would do well with rethinking the RAILROAD to incarceration..
Aram - Getting more justice into the system is an extremely challenging project! I hope you can succeed! First, as you and others point out, the incentives are wrong. We, the public, and the press put so much pressure on prosecutors to find someone guilty when there is a serious crime, that naming someone as the criminal becomes more important than finding the real criminal. Are there any consequences for convicting the wrong person? I am sure there are some honest mistakes, but often the mistakes are carelessness or intentional blindness to some of the facts. Can you get the incentives adjusted?
Another big problem I see all the time: many of the people I talk to do not really believe that a 'minority' person might go to jail for the same crime that a 'white' person would either go free or into rehabilitation. They believe in a fair justice system, but they also believe minorities commit many more crimes. Can you educate the public to the fundamental unfairness, at all levels, that we have built into the system over the years? I worry that without support from the general public it will be difficult to make the needed changes. Good luck!
All politics begin in the community; act locally, speak globally. For evil to succeed, all a good man need do is keep quiet. Thank you for questioning authority and bringing attention to a local problem with national implications.
Danielle Martell Palo Alto Community Advocate, and former Palo Alto City Council candidate
Aram: I have just read the comments to your amazing article. The great responses tell me that there is a sleeping giant that might be wakened if all of us were to initially pool our weight in breaking up one part of the criminal justice system.
Tonight (Feb.1,2011) on Public television was a Frontline (I think) expose of the coroner system and how inexperienced,incompetent, untrained coroners add to the mess-up in the system. I couldn't watch all of it because of time pressure.
This brings me to your hard-hitting article on the crime labs and how prosecuting and defense attorneys often use the incompetence of the crime lab to their advantage. Just like Enron, Ken Lay could not have done what he did without help from Wall Street, board members, bank regulators,CPA's, etc. I am thinking that, whenever you get back to it, you might go more into detail about some of the heinous mistakes made in the crime labs and the issue of poor management. Then draw from your vast experience and knowledge why this is allowed to continue. You've got one part of the pie already, the attorneys. What about the DA, what about the mayor, the supervisors,the city councils. In Santa Clara County the county is supposed to get reports regarding the lab, for example. What does it do with these reports? File them without reading them?. Maybe those with similar experiences can add to such an article.
Sound like a plan?
Betsy Wolf-Graves.De-Bug volunteer and CPA member
It's refreshing to see someone as comitted to justice as Aram James. His cry for vigilance in forensic science is worthwhile for the entire law enforcement community. And, perhaps as he points our, partial blame may be found in the defense bench as well.
Hey Aram, now that you have pulled the rabbit out of the hat, and you have opened our eyes to see how deep the rabbit hole goes. We must continue to enforce this knowledge in the criminal justice system. Attorneys do has little work has possible when it come to a good defense, as you said. With this information a defender can make sure his/ or her Attorney will take those extra steps to ensure a balance defense. We also have to lay some responsibility on the Supervisors, they should expect the Attorneys under their watch have this standard ingrained in their defense, but unfortunately it is not happening.
Aram I am so glade you wrote this article, you really are telling it like it is. It is a shame that defendants must have some level of education in the law in order to have a just out come for in their defense.
Thanks for keeping it real.
Gail Noble- Silicon Valley De-Bug/ Albert Cobarrubias Justice Project
This is a wonderful article. Thank you for painting a clear picture on what many of think about or have directly experienced; that the application of the law is loosely threaded together by criminal justice procedures that have no grounding in reality. We need more people like Mr. James to remind us how damaging the criminal justice system is to our commmunities.
Ali RahnomaSilicon Valley De-Bug/ Albert Cobarrubias Justice Project
I served with Aram in Santa Clara County. When proper defense policy is followed, wrongful convictions are prevented. Criminal cases are not similar to civil matters, criminal cases are the true test of our Constitution. Defense attorneys must always remember their client is not the employer paying their salary, the client is not even the person charged. The client is the Constitution.
Aram: You make a devastating case against the so-called justice system. It makes for frightening reading. You point out that the systemic problem goes much beyond just malfeasance at the crime lab.
However, I am unclear as to what real solutions and actions you are proposing. Perhaps you will write a follow-up article detailing concrete steps that concerned citizens can undertake to reform the system.
It doesn't suffice to say "Our communities will accept nothing less than the same measure of due process and equal protection that the lawyers would demand if it were their life and liberty on the line." Most of my "community" for instance has not and probably will not come into contact with the system. I venture that few if any are even aware, let alone exercised enough to even write their public servants about these issues. If defendants rights are routinely stipulated away by their public defenders it presumably happens because the defendant does not know enough to insist otherwise to their public defender. Is there a code of ethical conduct for public defenders that is actually adhered to and enforced? If judges routinely accept/allow "expert" testimony by complete novices are they not to be held to account as well? Regards, Shankar
Aram, you are a powerful attorney that many DA's have feared. This article hopefully will open up the eyes of all lazy dumptruck attorneys on both sides. You would think with the amount of resources and technology we have now a days, "junk science" should not be happening if evidence was handled correctly.
Dear Aram This is an informative, interesting, well written report about the short comings of the criminal justice system in our state. A functional, effective, criminal justice system is here to serve the community and promote public safety. What’s missing is the cooperative problem-solving desire among the various departments which has led to inefficiencies in the use of everyone's time and resources. What we need is a process that creates an incredible opportunity to replace the old systems with new hallmarks, cooperation, accountability, integrity, responsibility, common values, professionalism of the responsible parties involved
Once upon a time a great deal of us took our families for summer vacations in Mexico to later share wonderful stories. Those were also the days when the defense bar in California was something to be reckoned with. The pendulum swung to the age of darkness, our prisons have filled at the expense and sacrifice of health, education and youth recreational programs. We are now faced with similar conditions of the historical great depression. The “war” on drugs was a farce that has made drug dealing profitable like never before. Addictions are health problems, which are best resolved by health professionals. California reports record numbers of prisoners, just at the State level serving out their terms, without taking into account the 58 county jails and the Federal Penitentiaries within our state. Although everything seems hopeless, let us remember that the pendulum never stops swinging and it is now time for us to again come together and reform our broken down systems. Not much different from the repeal of the Volstead Act (National Prohibition Act), are the changes needed. The defense bar must again become active, bold and responsive to the needs of our people. We must all do our bit and attend community meetings, to address our needs. In the words of Benjamin Franklin 'Gentlemen we must all hang together or we shall most assuredly all hang separately'
As lemmings fall to the sea, so do the masses run to buy into the State’s perspective on those accused in the criminal justice system (i.e., they would not have been arrested or charged if they were not guilty). No longer does the State have the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, as the prosecutors hold the upper hand against the prosecuted. Many are caught in this legal quagmire, without a voice, because the public-at-large ignores their duties as jurors and citizens, instead rallying to an “off with their heads” philosophy.
Knowledge is power and change in within the hands of the people – look to recent events in Egypt and Tunisia for the power of people to effect remarkable change. The judiciary is a small part of the legal process, in view of the masses of accused and prosecuted; sometimes corrupt, sometimes without power. Your tax dollars fund the prosecution, as well as the judiciary, but there is no balance in this funding process. Many believe that a “felony” is a commission of a violent, dangerous crime, when in fact the length of punishment defines it. Logic would lead us to believe that if the punishment is longer, then the crime must have been violent or otherwise extreme – unfortunately, such is not the case. Those often-mentioned “technicalities” are your rights under the Constitution, instead voters believe that can undo Constitutional rights with 51% of the turnout in agreement. In spite of the fact that California is more than three years backlogged in processing DNA samples, from convicted criminals, now the State has the right to collect and process DNA samples upon arrest for non-violent felonies (not conviction) thanks to ignorant voters
We have enough laws – interpretation and proper enforcement are the problems. Legislators often enact new laws in a knee-jerk reaction to a sensational event. California has the largest prison population of its existence, with a cry for more funding of jails, prisons, and prosecutions. Many serve life sentences for non-violent offenses, with a cost to taxpayers of approximately $45,000 per year, per inmate. The public needs to become aware of the true situation of this system and rise up to protect our rights and ensure that the founding goals are achieved.
this should be on everyones wall
Dear Aram James,
Thanks for your detailed article regarding the use of crime labs as the "end all and fix all" in our justice communities.
The truth of the matter is, as you have stated, the problem brought into the sun light at and with our law enforcement Crime Labs. The fact that many if not all Crime Labs should be investigated, cleaned up, and challenged at every corner needs to be translated into every language.
Having been witness personally to murder trials, I have seen first hand how poorly, important evidence is handled and "lost". It seemed that evidence had been thrown out because of poor collection, investigation, and tracking techniques. Not to mention the time a very, very expensive watch was entered into the evidence of a case and then mysteriously was missing from the evidence locker.
You are correct that our youth are being plea bargained into JAIL and later POVERTY with DESPAIR to follow.
Our Public Defender are to blame as you have correctly pointed out - allowing and accepting poor workmanship is laziness plain and simple.
Danny Garza
Aram,
Thank you for confirming for me the belief that there just might be people out there with their eyes wide open and hearts ablaze for REAL justice. Thank you for remembering that we should not be judged by the color of our skin, but by the strength of our character.
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