COURT RULES OUT DISMISSING OVER 600 DUI CASES.Byline: Jesse Hiestand Daily News Staff Writer A Superior Court judge denied a motion Monday to dismiss more than 600 drunk-driving cases, ruling that sloppy slop·py adj. slop·pi·er, slop·pi·est 1. Marked by a lack of neatness or order; untidy: a sloppy room. 2. and unlicensed testing of breath samples did not infringe in·fringe v. in·fringed, in·fring·ing, in·fring·es v.tr. 1. To transgress or exceed the limits of; violate: infringe a contract; infringe a patent. 2. on defendants' constitutional rights. The 21-page ruling by Judge Steve Z. Perren puts the 600 cases back into the local judicial system, where about 200 of the cases have yet to be tried. His finding that the county's crime lab conducted unlicensed breath tests from November to May could be used by defense attorneys to bolster their clients' cases and appeals. But Perren also ruled that Ventura County officials did not conspire con·spire v. con·spired, con·spir·ing, con·spires v.intr. 1. To plan together secretly to commit an illegal or wrongful act or accomplish a legal purpose through illegal action. 2. to conceal problems at the crime lab - a central argument in the challenge mounted five months ago by about 40 defense attorneys. ``The court is not persuaded by a preponderance of evidence A standard of proof that must be met by a plaintiff if he or she is to win a civil action. In a civil case, the plaintiff has the burden of proving the facts and claims asserted in the complaint. that the Ventura County Crime Lab engaged in a deliberate and systematic practice of withholding information or in violating constitutional, statutory or regulatory mandates,'' wrote Perren, who declined to comment on his ruling. Perren's ruling said lab officials made a good-faith effort to comply with the law, and he chalked up the operation's problems to incompetence, not deceit Deceit Aimwell pretends to be titled to wed into wealth. [Br. Lit.: The Beaux’ Stratagem] Ananias lies about amount of money received for land. [N.T.: Acts 5:1–6] Ananias Club all its members are liars. [Am. . ``The lab failed to achieve compliance through a combination of management failings, misfortune and the poor performance and supervision of alcohol analysis,'' Perren wrote. Deputy Public Defender public defender, governmental official who represents indigent persons accused of crime. U.S. Supreme Court decisions expanding the right to counsel to pretrial proceedings and holding that a person cannot be sentenced to even one day in jail unless a lawyer was Brian Vogel - one of the lead attorneys - disagreed with the judge's assessment, but said the hearings established a detailed account of the lab's problems, which can be used to challenge individual cases. ``One of the biggest benefits is that each of the defendants can now use this record in their case, and if they want to appeal there are certainly strong grounds to do so,'' he said. And although the ruling fell short of the defense goal, Vogel said the effort was worth it. ``Simply exposing the shadowy practices of the crime lab to the cleansing light of public scrutiny was certainly a victory in itself,'' he said. Deputy District Attorney Pete Kossoris said prosecutors long have conceded that the lab had problems, including flawed testing and noncompliance noncompliance failure of the owner to follow instructions, particularly in administering medication as prescribed; a cause of a less than expected response to treatment. noncompliance with state law. But he said it would have been a disservice dis·ser·vice n. A harmful action; an injury. disservice Noun a harmful action Noun 1. to the community for Perren to dismiss any of these cases or suppress the evidence. ``We're pleased with the decision and feel it was a fair and well-reasoned one that we can certainly live with,'' he said. ``I think the defense mounted a vigorous and skillful skill·ful adj. 1. Possessing or exercising skill; expert. See Synonyms at proficient. 2. Characterized by, exhibiting, or requiring skill. case. They gave us a run for our money.'' Ventura County Sheriff Larry Carpenter said Monday that officials are working closely with state regulators and have implemented corrective measures to ensure that the lab is operating within the law. ``One of the reasons we were out of compliance was that we hadn't notified the state of our new techniques and procedures,'' Carpenter said. ``There was absolutely nothing scientifically wrong with what we were doing. We just did not advise the state of those changes.'' Carpenter also said he believes the public has faith in the competence of the crime lab because officials were quick to disclose their problems. ``I don't think there's any public loss of trust because from the beginning the problems we found at the lab were openly discussed,'' he said. ``There were some mistakes made - some obvious mistakes in alcohol testing. It was something that was identified early on and was called to the attention of people who began dealing with it.'' Supervisor Frank Schillo said the judge's ruling was a reassuring sign for the Ventura County Sheriff's Department The Ventura County Sheriff's Department (VCSD) provides law enforcement for the unincorporated areas of Ventura County, California, USA, as well as several cities within the county. The cities that VCSD serves are Camarillo, Fillmore, Moorpark, Ojai, and Thousand Oaks. and should help restore public confidence in the crime lab. The county supervisors, however, have not taken an active role in reviewing the crime lab issue. Schillo said that is Sheriff Larry Carpenter's responsibility. ``He's an elected official and he's had the situation we`ll in hand, I thought,'' Schillo said. ``It's the justice system that has to duke this out.'' The crime lab's problems date to Nov. 16, 1996, when its only forensic alcohol supervisor, Norm Fort, retired unexpectedly. The lab continued testing alcohol samples although a supervisor wasn't present - a violation of state regulations. From the time Fort retired until his successor was hired May 23, the lab experienced a number of other problems. Technician Vince Vitale failed a state proficiency test proficiency test n → prueba de capacitación in February and a subsequent on-site inspection by the state Department of Health Services Department of Health Services may refer to:
This led defense attorneys to seek more information about the lab's alcohol testing procedures and personnel. Among other things, the defense found that for one month after March 19 the lab continued to do breath alcohol testing in violation of a DHS DHS Department of Homeland Security (USA) DHS Department of Human Services DHS Department of Health Services DHS Demographic and Health Surveys DHS Dirhams (Morocco national currency) order to cease such tests. And it was discovered that Vitale, while temporarily heading the alcohol unit, botched botch tr.v. botched, botch·ing, botch·es 1. To ruin through clumsiness. 2. To make or perform clumsily; bungle. 3. To repair or mend clumsily. n. 1. 80 percent of the blood and urine tests between Nov. 20 and March 13. Vitale has since retired. Perren addressed these problems in his ruling, but did not affix affix v. 1) to attach something to real estate in a permanent way, including planting trees and shrubs, constructing a building, or adding to existing improvements. blame to any particular lab official. He instead crafted a set of remedies that take a middle-of-the-road approach to the lab's troubles. LAB CHRONOLOGY Nov. 19: Norm Fort retires as forensic alcohol supervisor with Ventura County Sheriff's Department crime lab after 31 years as a criminalist crim·i·nal·ist n. A specialist in the collection and examination of the physical evidence of crime. crim . County asks that its license to test DUI samples be extended 90 days while Fort's successor completes certified training. Dec. 19: State grants county a 90-day extension after criminalist Halle Weingarten is named temporary forensic alcohol supervisor. March 19: California Department of Health Services notifies lab that it is suspending its approval to analyze blood, urine and breath samples after criminalist Vincent Vitale fails routine proficiency test. State Justice Department lab in Santa Barbara Santa Barbara (săn'tə bär`brə, –bərə), city (1990 pop. 85,571), seat of Santa Barbara co., S Calif., on the Pacific Ocean; inc. 1850. begins testing blood and urine samples for county. County crime lab continues testing breath samples. April 8: Prosecutor John Cardoza, who supervises misdemeanor DUI cases, meets with sheriff's officials. Cardoza later says lab officials told him license suspension applied only to blood and urine analyses. Sheriff's officials say they told him suspension included breath testing. April 17: District attorney's investigator Danny Miller meets with sheriff's officials. In a memo written four days later, he says the crime lab determined that Vitale overstated o·ver·state tr.v. o·ver·stat·ed, o·ver·stat·ing, o·ver·states To state in exaggerated terms. See Synonyms at exaggerate. o alcohol levels in almost three dozen blood samples. Sheriff's Cmdr. William Wade
May 9: State sends letter to crime lab informing officials that continuing breath testing could jeopardize jeop·ard·ize tr.v. jeop·ard·ized, jeop·ard·iz·ing, jeop·ard·izes To expose to loss or injury; imperil. See Synonyms at endanger. reapproval of lab's license. May 13: State installs and staffs breath testing machine testing machine Machine used in materials science to determine the properties of a material. Machines have been devised to measure tensile strength, strength in compression, shear, and bending (see strength of materials), ductility, hardness, impact strength ( at Ventura County Jail. May 23: State renews crime lab's license after criminalist Dea Boehme qualifies as forensic alcohol supervisor. May 28: Ventura Superior Court Judge Steven Z. Perren opens hearings on challenges to drunk-driving cases stemming from crime lab's loss of license. May 29: The district attorney's senior investigator, Michael McKendry, meets with sheriff's officials. They claim Fort knowingly perjured per·jure tr.v. per·jured, per·jur·ing, per·jures Law To make (oneself) guilty of perjury by deliberately testifying falsely under oath. himself when he testified the lab followed the state's Title 17 regulations relating to relating to relate prep → concernant relating to relate prep → bezüglich +gen, mit Bezug auf +acc alcohol testing procedures. Discrepancies in testing procedures didn't alter the accuracy of the tests, they said. June 4: Criminalist Vitale is placed on paid administrative leave. June 5: Defense attorneys ask Perren to recuse To disqualify or remove oneself as a judge over a particular proceeding because of one's conflict of interest. Recusal, or the judge's act of disqualifying himself or herself from presiding over a proceeding, is based on the Maxim District Attorney's Office from DUI cases being challenged. Judge sets another hearing for July 11, and gives defense attorneys until noon June 10 to list what cases will be challenged. Aug. 22: Hearings on the challenge of more than 600 drunk-driving cases ground to a halt and a key defense attorney, Kevin DeNoce, withdraws from the case after the defense team informed Perren that McKendry had t`alked with DeNoce, a former county prosecutor who once led the district attorney's DUI unit. DeNoce withdraws from the litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. after denying to Perren that he shared any potentially damaging information with prosecutors. Sept. 16: Defense attorneys lose round one in their effort to get the drunk-driving cases dismissed. Perren denies the motion to remove the county District Attorney's Office, ruling there was no evidence prosecutors encouraged or helped the sheriff's crime lab break state law by doing unlicensed breath testing. Perren also rules prosecutors did not conceal any information about the lab's problems. Sept. 18: Defense attorneys suffer their second setback when Perren denies the motion to dismiss more than 600 drunk-driving cases because of allegations of prosecutorial misconduct In jurisprudence, prosecutorial misconduct is a procedural defense; via which, a defendant may argue that they should not be held criminally liable for actions which may have broken the law, because the prosecution acted in an "inappropriate" or "unfair" manner. . Oct. 27: Perren rejects a motion to dismiss more than 600 DUI cases, but says he will review those cases that ended with guilty pleas to determine whether defendants may challenge the convictions. Perren finds the lab operated out of compliance with state regulations for a six-month period beginning in November 1996, giving defense attorneys a chance to challenge as many as 400 drunk-driving convictions on a case-by-case basis. About 200 pending cases are cleared for trial, but prosecutors must prove crime lab evidence is scientifically valid. CRIME LAB RULING Judge Steven Z. Perren's ruling on the crime lab case Monday split the 600 drunk driving cases into two broad categories - those awaiting trial and those that have been resolved with a guilty plea or trial. PENDING CASES: The approximately 200 pending cases can proceed to trial. But prosecutors will not be able to use alcohol analyses from the crime lab without first proving to a judge or jury that the testing was scientifically valid. Had the crime lab not violated state law in the six months leading up to May 1997, the prosecution would not have to establish a ``scientific foundation'' for the tests. Now, the evidence will `not be admitted unless it is shown that the alcohol testing machines were working properly and the tests were administered properly by a qualified technician. RESOLVED CASES: About 400 cases have already been resolved either through a guilty plea or trial. Those cases will be individually reviewed by a judge to see whether a defendant deserves an opportunity to withdraw their plea or ask for a new trial. Perren plans to spend the next three weeks reviewing all cases that were resolved with guilty pleas. Cases that have been tried will be sent back to their respective trial judges. In either case, judges are not expected to allow a defendant to withdraw a guilty plea or seek a new trial unless they can show that information the lab withheld about its alcohol testing program could help a defendant's case. CAPTION(S): 2 Boxes BOX: (1) LAB CHRONOLOGY (see text) (2) CRIME LAB RULING (see text) 
L. Rat (Member): Ballistics expert put on alcohol testing after refusing to lie about evidence in murder trial cleared 2/27/2008 6:29 PM
Vitale was asked to lie in a case involving ballistics (his occupation for years) and interstingly enough, people left that lab either "unexpectedly" (Hah!) or on "stress leave" as a federal case had emerged as a direct result of the retaliation against Vitale for not lying for the DA's office. He filed in federal court for relief, as alcohol testing was not his specilty, nor had he done any in his 30+ year career, and the supervisor that disappeared on "Stress leave" knew this fact. It was not "stress leave", it was a federal investigation and trial which Vitale won.
It was found that Vitale was retaliated against after he refused to lie in court for the DA's office. He was forced to do work he had trained in, only approximately 30 years earlier, yet had been working in ballistics nearly his entire career and was at the top of his field in this area. He received damages in an undisclosed amount and a gag order was issued shortly afterwards by the federal court. It was found that the county DA had deliberately changed his job, knowing all to well that Vitale had no rescent training or expertise in ths area. Those who "disappeared" from the office, took "leave of absences" and so on no longer work there. The DAs office was found liable for the damages to Vitale and the county was ordered to make restitution to Vitale who had a 30+ year career in ballistics. One of his peers was heard to say, "If you are guilty, you don't want Vitale in the ballistics lab; if you're innocent, Vitale is the person you want in the ballistics lab. He is the best man for the job" Before being asked to lie about evidence for the DA, which he refused to do, Vitale had a spotless record in his career. When the DA retaliated, he was put on work which his supervisor, the DA's office and others in the county knew he had no training for 30+ years. This is why Vitale failed the test. They knew he would, and this is why he was pulled from ballistics and put on alcohol testing. In federal court, Vitale was awarded a large, undisclosed sum in damages (estimated in the millions), as the DAs office was found to have used the press to destroy Vitale's spotless career. Vitale's name was cleared in federal court, although the damage done to his career and personally by the trial was not,as a gag order of the fine details was placed on the case after the trial. |
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