"Inquest finds flaws in N.C. blood evidence; Data reportedly were withheld; impact on cases is under review" by Martha Waggoner, Associated Press | August 19, 2010
RALEIGH, N.C. — Analysts at North Carolina’s crime lab omitted, overstated, or falsely reported blood evidence in dozens of cases, including three that ended in executions and another in which two men were imprisoned for murdering Michael Jordan’s father, according to a scathing review released yesterday.
The inquest, ordered by the government and conducted by two former FBI officials, found that agents of the State Bureau of Investigation repeatedly aided prosecutors in obtaining convictions over a 16-year period, mostly by misrepresenting blood evidence and keeping critical notes from defense attorneys.
The review said information that could have helped defendants was sometimes misrepresented or withheld....
That is a VIOLATION of the CONSTITUTION!
The report does not conclude that innocent people were convicted, noting the evidence wasn’t always used at trials and defendants may have admitted to crimes. But it states that prosecutors and defense lawyers need to check whether tainted lab reports helped lead to confessions or pleas....
The review found 230 cases in which eight SBI analysts filed reports that, at best, were incomplete....
The report says the lab may have violated federal and state laws mandating that evidence favorable to defendants be shared with their lawyers. It also bolsters defense attorneys’ long-held argument that the lab is in the pocket of law enforcement....
Yeah, and Americans know it.
Not all that rare here in AmeriKa:
Massachusetts Justice: Holding Back
Massachusetts Justice: Wrongful Convictions
Massachusetts Justice: Wrongful Imprisonment
Torture Cell Found in Massachusetts
MSM Xmas Gifts: To American Convicts
I guess it would feel that way.
