Scientist: I was pushed out of DPS because I wouldn’t lie

A former forensic scientist at Arizona’s state-run crime lab has sued his former employers, claiming he was pushed out after refusing to give false testimony about the lab’s blood-testing equipment.

The lawsuit, filed Monday in the U.S. District Court of Arizona, claims that retaliation by Arizona Department of Public Safety employees violated Greg Ohlson’s First Amendment right to free speech. He is seeking an undisclosed amount in damages, for “loss of income and benefits; humiliation, emotional distress and damage to reputation.”

Ohlson worked for the DPS from 2004 until last year, in the Scientific

Analysis Bureau’s Toxicology Department. His work involved testing blood samples for DUI cases, and he was occasionally asked to testify about his findings.

Although some larger Arizona police agencies run their own testing equipment, many departments use the state’s lab to test blood for alcohol levels. The results can be used as evidence in a criminal prosecution.

The suit says that the break with Ohlson’s employers began in 2016 and was rooted in a disagreement over what lab results to provide to defense attorneys.

Blood tests are run in “batches,” which can analyze up to 90 duplicate blood samples from 45 different people. In at least two separate cases, defense attorneys had requested results from the entire batch as a way to fact-check the results.

The DPS initially refused to release the batch-run results, Ohlson’s attorney said, arguing that it would take too much time. Defense attorneys asked a judge to force the DPS to hand over the full batch and, in a hearing, called Ohlson to testify about his research.

According to the lawsuit, Ohlson’s testimony undercut DPS’ official line.

“(Ohlson) testified to his opinion that release of the entire batch would be in the public interest and, except in rare instances, support the validity of the individual result,” the lawsuit stated.

The judge ordered the DPS to release the entire batch following Ohlson’s testimony. Later, a jury found the defendant not guilty of his DUI charge.

Ohlson’s lawsuit claims his superiors confronted him a month after his testimony and ordered him to alter his statements. Also, he was removed from testing blood samples and ordered to delete batch results he had been recording on DPS-issued computers, his attorneys said.

An employee-performance report provided in the lawsuit details the “oral instruction” Ohlson was given by his employers following his testimony.

“It was pointed out to you that your opinion … is contrary to the opinion of the other analysts in the bureau and contrary to the position of the laboratory,” the DPS employee-performance report stated. “You were advised that testifying about what other agencies in the state do with regards to disclosure or storage of their data is outside of your current qualifications. You are not currently employed by these agencies and are not aware of their current procedures, protocols or policies.”

Ohlson again testified days after the June 2016 report was issued, and was put on administrative leave. After an internal investigation, his superiors found him guilty of insubordination and “conduct adverse to the agency.” His pay was docked, and he was removed from laboratory work.

Ohlson’s attorneys said he “got the message” and retired in early 2017.

In a media statement, Ohlson’s attorneys

After an internal investigation, his superiors found him guilty of insubordination and “conduct adverse to the agency.” His pay was docked, and he was removed from laboratory work.

included a quote from a judge in one of the cases in which Ohlson testified.

“Based on the totality of the evidence presented at the recent hearing, this Court is of the opinion that a reasonable person could conclude that DPS’s policies and the application of those policies by DPS’s lab supervisors have created a culture of intimidation,” La Paz County Superior Court Judge Pro Tempore Gary Donahoe said.

The lawsuit names Beth Brady-Morris, Joseph Tripoli, Timothy Chung and Vincent Figarelli as defendants. All are employees of the department’s Scientific Analysis Bureau.

A DPS spokesman said the agency does not comment on pending litigation.

“Greg Ohlson’s actions honored the highest aspirations of public service,” his attorney, Michael Garth Moore, said in a statement. “Greg believed the disclosure of all the evidence would lead to greater public confidence in the outcome of all DUI prosecutions in the state. His only goal was to bring that about. His superiors painted him as a disruptive, argumentative employee. Simply not true.”