In 2019, the former chemist was seen attending a civil case at a federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts. 24 Federal Street, 4th Floor Massachusetts authorities are reviewing the sentences of 1,140 people who are in prison after being convicted with evidence at least partly provided by Dookhan. In one, drug lab technician Sonja Farak was caught tampering with evidence so she could steal hard drugs for personal use. In the first episode, audiences are revealed a very important fact about television - drug chemists arent actually a thing on television. The actions of Sonja Farak and Annie Dookhan caused a racket of such a scale that the state had to recompense for it with millions of dollars and had to make a historic move in the dismissal of wrongful convictions. 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. Rick is a Massachusetts native and graduated from Boston University. In the civil suit, she filed her own answer to the lawsuit and hired the services of attorney Susan Sachs. Ive been struggling with that, Carr said Its very uncomfortable and I dont know what its been like for her.. Northampton, MA 01060 After searching her work station, they found a vial of oxycodone and 11.7 grams of cocaine, along with kits to use crack. Reporter. To find out if your case was affected by either Ms. Dookhan or Ms. Farak, you can call a toll-free hotline operated by defense lawyers with the Committee for Public Counsel Services, the public defender agency in Massachusetts. Farak testified that she started off trying meth in the lab because she was curious. She confessed that back in college shed research drugs and noted that meth sounded like one she was especially interested in trying. In episode 3, audiences are introduced to the ACLU and its involvement in the case. She isnt on drugs anymore, and I think that that is incredible, Carr, who also directed the true-crime documentaries I Love You, Now Die and Mommy Dead and Dearest, told Womens Health. A judge's ruling that tossed out a defendant's conviction because of a drug lab scandal has now jeopardized nearly 10,000 convictions tied to disgraced former state chemist Sonja Farak and the . Three prosecutors connected with the Amherst drug lab scandal failed to disclose evidence and engaged in misconduct, including one prosecutor who actively misled others, a scathing report states. (The Massachusetts 2017 group exoneration involving chemist Annie Dookhan took place at the main lab.) I could not imagine being high on liquid methamphetamine and hiding it, day in, day out, Carr told, adding that her preliminary curiosity surrounding Farak kicked off the making of the docuseries. 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. [2][3], Dookhan was accused of forging reports and tampering with samples to produce desired results. They wrote that she served 13 months and was paroled sometime in 2015. In 2019, she was seen attending a civil court case relating to her, but she's otherwise kept a . Did you encounter any technical issues? This Board of Bar Overseers report comes as Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins last week said shes asking the states highest court to toss thousands of convictions for which evidence was processed at the now-disgraced Hinton lab. She disclosed to her therapist that all the drugs she was consuming came from her workplace. history. Very little is known about Farak, the former chemist at the states drug lab, since she has kept a very low profile, even more so after her release from prison. Two Massachusetts drug-testing laboratory technicians are caught tampering with and falsifying drug evidence, and prosecutors are reluctant to disclose the full extent of their criminal behavior. They wrote that Lee, disabled by a stew of mental ailments, [spent] her hours surfing the Web in a haze.. The Amherst Bulletin reported that her medical records indicated that she only became addicted to drugs once she started working at the lab, in 2004. While this series isn't fiction, it would've passed this infamous test if it was. How to Fix a Drug Scandal is an American true crime documentary miniseries that was released on Netflix on April 1, 2020. Sincevery few people willingly dabble in drugs, its more of a question to ask why is this person using drugs to begin with? This is even further legitimized when it's revealed Sonja Farak was dealing with depression since she was 16 years old. Netflix's most original true-crime film: "How to Fix a Drug Crisis," [3] was released on April 1st, 2020. Sonja Farak took heroin, cocaine from evidence inventory, attorney general alleges. While she's gaining traction in the television world, she has much deeper roots in the theater world. The state and attorneys for some of the defendants agreed to a $14 million settlement to reimburse 31,000 defendants for post conviction-related costs, such as probation and parole fees, drug analysis and GPS monitoring. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. Sonja had stolen samples from her colleagues' tests and amended the lab database to cover her tracks. Because she did so, Plaintiff served more than five years in a state prison.". It didnt matter whether or not she was the one who did the testing or some other chemist. In Massachusetts it doesn't even end there. We were unable to subscribe you to WBUR Today. Former chemist Annie Dookhan was convicted in 2013 on charges of improperly testing drug evidence at a drug lab in Boston. Farak also used her position in the lab to manufacture her own drugs for personal use. Sonja Farak: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know. The filmmaker told that she spent a lot of time thinking about Farak and trying to humanize her. If you can't get enough of true crime documentaries, Netflix is your best friend. Soon after, the state police took over the control, and the lab was moved to Springfield, where it remains under the supervision of the state police. YouTube Farak was addicted to the drugs she was testing and was accused of smoking crack "10 to 12 times a day, including during work" at a lab in Amherst, according to a state probe. Massachusetts chemist accused of tampering with evidence, drug possession, Sonja Farak took heroin, cocaine from evidence inventory, attorney general alleges, Another chemist was accused of tampering, affecting 34,000 drug cases, in October. Penate had been arrested in 2011 for selling heroin. According to an Attorney General Offices report, Farak attended Temple University in Philadelphia for graduate school, which is where she became a recreational drug user. | Powered by Artimization. Sasson, Turnbull, Ryan & Hoose If you're on the prowl for . I wasnt abused and yet I still turned out a certain way, still had some problems.. Investigators found that Sonja Farak tested drug samples and testified in court while under the influence of methamphetamines, ketamine, cocaine, LSD and other drugs between 2005 and 2013. These simple statements can be easily overlooked, which is why it is important that audiences are aware of the impact that these women had on criminal justice history. The case notoriously involved a rare one . Even though Farak found a job after graduation and was settled down with her partner, she continued to struggle with depression and felt like a stranger in her body. Well, before the credits rolled, the documentary revealed Sonja Farak is reportedly still sober. [4] Farak was accused of tampering with the evidence she was tasked with analyzing by using it to get high herself. She started working there in 2004 and appreciated that it was more laid back than the job at Hinton. Farak pleaded guilty to four counts of tampering with evidence, four counts of theft of a controlled substance from an authorized dispensary, and two counts of possession of cocaine in 2014. He was most recently a reporter at The Lowell Sun. The drug lab technician was sent to prison for 18 months, but was released in 2015. 2. 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. Please limit your input to 500 characters. Her role was to test for the presence of illegal substances, which could be instrumental in thousands of . Fue arrestada el 19 de enero de 2013. Please note that if your case has been identified for dismissal, it could take approximately 2-3 months for the relevant court records to be updated. According to a Rolling Stone profile on Farak and the case, the former chemist has not been heard from since her release. Fick & Marx LLP In 2013, Massachusetts State Police arrested 35-year-old crime drug lab chemist Sonja Farak for tampering with evidence: and that was only the beginning. How does Jon Taffer Feb 1, 2023. In How to Fix a Drug Scandal, there are some funny moments, surprising details, and shocking facts that are interesting, but hard to catch. "The mental health worksheets constituted admissions by the state lab chemist assigned to analyze the samples seized in Plaintiffs case that she was stealing and using lab samples to feed a drug addiction at the time she was testing and certifying the samples in Plaintiffs case, including, in one instance, on the very day that she certified a sample," Robertson's ruling reads. WilliamW. Fick However, throughout her time at the lab, Sonja was habitually abusing these substances for personal use and carried out her role whilst high on liquid methamphetamine, cocaine, LSD and even crack. Release year: 2020. Every single day, Farak would get high; the chemist used the bathroom to smoke crack and the lab facilities to cook more. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. Netflixs How to Fix a Drug Scandal tells the story of two women whose actions brought to light the negligence of the system that is supposed to deliver justice to everyone. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. A former state chemist, Sonja Farak, made headlines in 2013 when she was arrested for stealing and using drugs from a laboratory. Her job was to define whether a substance someone was caught carrying was really cocaine, meth, or something else. Where is Sonja now? When Farak was arrested,former Attorney General Martha Coakley told the public investigators believed Farak tampered with drugs at the lab for only a few months. April 2, 2020 12:56 pm. Kaczmarek also oversaw the prosecution for the attorney general's office in that case. In the documentary, an actress plays Sonja Farak for B-roll scenes, and that actress is Shannon ONeill. The number is888-999-2881. She had been accused of "intentional infliction of emotional distress in addition to the conspiracy to violate [Penate's] civil rights.". Throughout the show, many interviewees state that this isnt really about a drug problem, its about a problem thats been going on way before drugs came in the picture - mental health. 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. One thing that How to Fix a Drug Scandal makes clear is that it wasnt all Sonja Faraks fault. Sonja Farak pleaded guilty to stealing samples of drugs from an Amherst drug lab. 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. Sonja Farak (left) leaving the courthouse with her lawyer. "I was smoking in the lab, I was smoking at home. In December 2011, Springfield, Massachusetts police arrested Rolando Penate for allegedly selling heroin, and the drugs were sent off to be tested by then-35-year-old drug lab chemist Sonja Farak . (Approx.) She was ultimately sentenced to 18 months in prison in 2014. Farak is one of two Massachusetts drug lab technicians who were caught tainting evidence that was . It gave me energy. Between Farak and Annie Dookhan, over 47,000 drug convictions were overturned, sending them to retrials. It's rare for the key players of a story to involve mostly women, butthey werein this case. She had suffered from mental health issues throughout her life and, according to Rolling Stone, had tried to kill herself in High School. She first worked at the Hinton State Laboratory in Jamaica Plain for a year as a bacteriologist working on HIV tests before she transferred to the Amherst Lab for drug analysis. She had also kept a detailed daily record of her substance abuse for a drug counsellor, which noted that she used. Farak admitted in testimony that she began using drugs almost as soon as she started working at the Massachusetts State Crime Lab in Amherst. Position in the lab to manufacture her own answer to the lawsuit and hired the services attorney. The one who did the testing or some other chemist was released on Netflix on April 1,.... State chemist, Sonja Farak pleaded guilty to stealing samples of drugs a. Working at the main lab. when it 's revealed Sonja Farak ( left ) leaving courthouse... About television - drug chemists arent actually a thing on television traction in the facilities... College shed research drugs and noted that she spent a lot of time thinking about Farak the... Drugs she was tasked with analyzing by using it to get high ; the chemist used the bathroom smoke! 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