Playing it safe

Proactive steps from DA on forensic evidence

From various parts of the country over the years have come stories about prosecutors and courts reluctant to overturn convictions even when defendants’ rights have been violated or when key evidence subsequently proved to be tainted. When the justice system becomes overly invested in itself, an individual’s rights can fall by the wayside. Poor, minority and unsophisticated defendants are particularly vulnerable.

Fortunately, Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. has just sent a strong signal that no such languor will be tolerated here. Mr. Zappala has ordered the review of about 600 cases in which evidence was handled by a chemist at the medical examiner’s office who’s now on unpaid leave for a possible drug problem.

The question is whether the chemist stole or mishandled evidence. No charges have been filed so far. Out of an abundance of caution, however, Mr. Zappala wants the cases reviewed to ensure that proper evidence testing and handling protocols were followed. This will mean considerable additional work for his staff and the medical examiner’s office, but it is work that must be done. “Even if we don’t think there’s a problem, we still have to work the files,” he said.

Science doesn’t lie. That’s why forensic evidence has become a staple of criminal cases. However, in a 2009 report, the National Academy of Sciences warned about the danger of flawed testing procedures and analysts’ improprieties — scenarios that rob science of its vaunted impartiality and lead to wrongful convictions. Problems must be nipped in the bud. Mr. Zappala’s decision to review the chemist’s cases is good not only for the defendants involved but for the integrity of the justice system and faith in forensic evidence.

A defense attorney could have gotten wind of the chemist’s problem, asked the prosecutor’s office to review the case or demanded a court’s intervention. That, in turn, could have unleashed a torrent of requests burying Mr. Zappala’s office and the courts with paperwork. Mr. Zappala’s proactive approach could keep that from happening while ensuring that defendants got the fair shake owed to them.