Her arrest led to the dismissal of thousands of drug cases in Massachusetts. How to Fix a Drug Scandal is the staggering true story of justice - Vox There was something so tragic but also surreal about this story.. Sonja Farak (left) leaving the courthouse with her lawyer. The strikes left 34 people injured, including three children, and caused widespread damage. Infamous drug lab chemist Sonja Farak faced an agonising new court case after being released from jail for smoking crack on the job. 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. How to Fix a Drug Scandal - Wikipedia The state is notifying people via letters, posting flyers and the settlement notice is available online. We were unable to subscribe you to WBUR Today. She shone academically as well. SJC dismisses thousands of drug cases after Amherst lab scandal 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. After graduating from Portsmouth High School, Farak attended the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, where she got a bachelor of science degree in biochemistry in 2000. 3 Farak Defendants. According to the notes, Farak thought it gave her energy, helped her to get things done and not procrastinate, feel more positive., Her partner Nikki Lee testified before a grand jury that she herself had tried cocaine, that she had observed Farak using cocaine in 2000, and that she had marijuana in her house when police officers arrived to search the premises as part of their investigation of Farak., In Faraks testimony during a grand jury investigation, she said that she became a recreational drug user during graduate school and used cocaine, marihuana, and ecstasy. She also said she used heroin one time and was nervous and sick and hated every minute of it [and had] no desire to use [it] again., Farak met and settled down with Nikki Lee in her 20s. The disgraced chemist was sentenced to less than two years behind bars in 2014, following her guilty pleas for stealing cocaine from the lab. In December 2020, he filed a motion for a new trial seeking to withdraw his guilty pleas on the basis that chemist Sonja Farak analyzed the drugs in question while she was employed at the William A. Hinton State Laboratory Institute (Hinton . Together, we can create a more connected and informed world. Despite being a star child of the family, Sonja suffered from the mental illnesses that haunted her even in adulthood. Asked what she thought Farak would want the public to know now, Carr says, "I think that she cares about [the idea] that addiction doesn't always look the same on everybody, and I think that she really struggled with letting people down. But this wasn't the only drug lab scandal that would rock the state's criminal justice system. Sonja Farak, 35, who worked at the Massachusetts State Crime Laboratory in Amherst, was arrested at her Northampton home Saturday night by Massachusetts State Police and is facing two counts of. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. No wonder, she expresses an initial surprise upon learning that Sonja got addicted to drugs while working on her job. Farak was arrested in January 2013 for stealing drugs . Rolling Stone covered both drug lab scandals in 2018 and uncovered that Farak had suffered from depression for many years. April 1, 2020. Sonja Farak is at the center of Netflix's new true crime docuseries, How To Fix a Drug Scandal. It appears that Linda has Christianity listed as her religion, and is a Caucasian woman, who's registered as a Democrat. Deborah Becker Twitter Host/ReporterDeborah Becker is a senior correspondent and host at WBUR. You have been subscribed to WBUR Today. She would conduct her work high on meth, cocaine, LSD and crack. He went to bat for clients who were affected by both Farak and Dookhans misconduct. The Chemists and the Cover-Up - reason.com Sonja Farak worked at the Amherst crime lab testing the authenticity of controlled substances submitted by state law enforcement agencies. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. Sonja Farak, a chemist with a longterm mental health struggle, is the catalyst of the story, but it doesn't end with her. 1. Release year: 2020. But I remember being terrified, sitting outside the courthouse hysterically crying. Massachusetts officials are notifying more than 30,000 people who will share a $14 million dollar settlement for the impact of the states drug lab scandals a decade ago. A lead plaintiff in the class action suit, Nicole Westcott, 34, of Belchertown, said she doesn't know exactly how much money she stands to receive if a judge signs off on the settlement later this fall. 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. Share. Rick is a Massachusetts native and graduated from Boston University. Am I somebody who took her personhood? Carr said that Farak is a private person. That settlement awaits approval by a judge. In the civil suit, she filed her own answer to the lawsuit and hired the services of attorney Susan Sachs. She was sentenced to 18 months behind bars, followed by five years of probation and 500 hours of community services, the same year. Farak was actually using the drugs, too. 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. Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more! "Annie Dookhan and Sonja Farak's crimes undermined the integrity of our justice system and impacted thousands of lives," Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey said when the settlement was. MGB medical residents want to change long hours, low pay and poor benefits. Who Are Sonja Farak and Annie Dookhan? How to Fix a Drug Scandal True Story Where Is Sonja Farak From Netflix's 'How To Fix A Drug Scandal' Now, And What Happened To Her? Two drug lab chemists' shocking crimes cripple a state's judicial system and blur the lines of justice for lawyers, officials and thousands of inmates. While Dookhan had tampered with evidence and indulged in dry-labbing, Farak stole from her workplace. As the docuseries shows, she admitted to a therapist in 2009 that she had been struggling with addiction issues since 2005. Netflix's latest true-crime series, How to Fix a Drug Scandal, dives deep into a shocking Massachusetts scandal, one that started in the humble confines of an underfunded drug testing lab and ended with an entire system in question. And yet, due to their actions, they did injure people and they did inflict a lot of pain, not just on a couple of people, but on thousands. Farak began her drug use by experimenting with liquid methamphetamine, but her addiction quickly grew and she began using other drugs including cocaine, and crack, which she smoked in her drug lab's bathroom, per Rolling Stone. In December 2011, after police in Springfield, Mass., had arrested Renaldo Penate for allegedly selling heroin, the drugs from that case were tested at a state drug lab by technician Sonja Farak. The show also delves into the issues of the state in discovering and reporting on the extent of the cases that were affected by Faraks actions. that she spent a lot of time thinking about Farak and trying to humanize her. Sonja Farak during her arraignment at Eastern Hampshire District Court in Belchertown in 2013. In Netflixs docuseries we get to hear from her sister, and mother, who give us an insight into Sonjas life, and how her actions impacted them. Here's Where Sonja Farak Is Now, After 'How to Fix a Drug Scandal' 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. Her medical records included notes from Faraks therapist in Amherst, Anna Kogan. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, on Monday, heard from attorneys representing prosecutors from the attorney general's office over their handling of the 2013 prosecution and arrest of drug. They were all rendered unacceptable. The lawsuit names Kaczmarek, Farak and three members of the state police. GBH News brings you the stories, local voices, and big ideas that shape our world. Email; Facebook Tweet Listen 7:58. . Instead, the documentary . Netflix released a new docu-series called "How to Fix a Drug Scandal." Time to get involved and help public media make an impact. The Mirror can reveal she was forced to defend herself in. Since Linda does not seem to have any social media profiles, we cannot give you a recent photographic update. Because she did so, Plaintiff served more than five years in a state prison.". SIMMONS, COMMONWEALTH vs., 488 Mass. 1001 Linda was born on 19th July 1951. "I was personally nervous, and I came away with a deeper level of understanding about her, about the caseand I felt a lot of gratitude that she met me," Carr says. Her curiosity soon led to a regular drug habit. In conclusion, Linda seems to be where she always was. Farak struggled with mental health throughout her life, the documentary series explains. A spokesperson for Attorney General Maura Healey said the AG has long been clear that the conduct that occurred during the previous administration was completely unacceptable and her focus has always been making sure the mistakes of the past never happen again., She implemented a clear policy relating to the disclosure of evidence that is covered at mandatory trainings, created an internal ethics committee, and is committed to continually enhancing the offices integrity practices, the spokesperson added. As shown in the docuseries, she testified that her childhood was normal and middle class. When she got married, it turned out that her wife, too, suffered from her own demons, and their collective anguish made Sonja desperate for a reprieve from this life. The process of reimbursing people for the biggest drug lab scandals in the nations history is moving forward. Farak apparently still tested each caseunlike Annie Dookhan, another Massachusetts chemist who was arrested five months prior to Farak for fabricating test results. I was doing really well, Westcott said. The surveillance of the chemists as well as the standards and the confiscated drugs has also been increased considerably. Before her sentencing, Farak failed a drug test while. Netflix's new docuseries How to Fix a Drug Scandal is about way more than former drug lab chemist Sonja Farak's years-long addiction to the drugs she was testing everyday. 1 Indeed, this Court's decisions concerning the Hinton drug lab scandal compel that remedy. A judge will hold a final hearing on the settlement in October. Read More: Where is Sonja Farak Sister Now? According to the Daily Hampshire Gazette, Farak graduated with awards and distinctions. Powered by. How to Fix A Drug Scandal takes a one-woman issue in a crumbling police drug lab and follows the way it blew up an entire legal system. While Farak claimed that she did in fact test all the drug evidence thrown her way, unlike Dookhan, she did so under highly questionable circumstances. She was released in 2015, as reported by Mass Live. Carr told Women's Health she was really interested in humanizing Farak's story to fill in the gaps left by New England media. Farak is one of two Massachusetts drug lab technicians who were caught tainting evidence that was used to convict thousands of defendants on drug charges. This achievement earned her a full page layout in the local paper and some local TV news coverage. She was caught when it was discovered she was high on LSD while testing samples from. In 2019, she was seen leaving the Springfield Federal Court but declined to comment on the status of the case. After launching a lengthy investigation, his attorney Luke Ryan discovered that Farak had been using drugs the same day she ran tests on the substances found on him, thanks to paperwork he discovered noting the date of one of Farak's therapy sessions, where she admitted to have been using that day. She grew up in Portsmouth with her sister Amy. Sadly, theirs weren't the greatest crimes in this real-life drama. Faraks wife had her own mental health problems, and according to Rolling Stone, Farak would have conflict with her wife every night at home. Anders Behring Breivik. Each person who has had a case dismissed will receive at least $150. Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. Linda was married to Stanley M Farak, who was in the US Navy. On top of that, it was also ensured that no analyst would ever work without supervision. You can try, Suspensions and a reprimand proposed for prosecutors admonished in drug lab scandal. Given the account that Farak was a law-abiding citizen, it is questioned as to how an educated person with a stable job would commit a crime of this magnitude. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. She started off doing drugs at work regularly she worked while on meth, liquid amphetamine, LSD, coke and crack. A status hearing on Penate's suit, which was filed in 2017, is scheduled for July. So, in a way, it is not from her that the queue of the blame should begin; it should be from the lab and the authorities themselves. I can guess that it has been very, very painful for her, she said. The new numbers appear in a report issued by a court-designated "Special Master." She currently keeps a very low profile and is dealing with a pending civil case, but How To Fix A Drug Scandal director Erin Lee Carr reveals to Women's Health that Farak is sober now. Dookhan married Surrendranath Dookhan, a software engineer, in 2004. I was provided for in every way, Farak testified. Carr chose to have an actress, Shannon O'Neill, recreate Farak's testimony in front of the grand jury with the help of the unsealed court transcripts. He said he feels she suffered from both a chemical dependency and a psychological dependence to the drugs. It gave me energy. Sonja got a job as a chemist at the Hinton State Laboratory building in Jamaica Plain after getting her college degree. Shes a high school graduate. She had been accused of intentional infliction of emotional distress in addition to the conspiracy to violate [Penates] civil rights.. A drug chemist in. They wrote that she served 13 months and was paroled sometime in 2015. Her reporting focuses on mental health, criminal justice and education. With her response, she only listed a Hatfield, Mass. El Chino ntrax. "No reasonable individual could have failed to appreciate the unlawfulness of [Kaczmarek's] actions in these circumstances," Robertson wrote in her ruling. In January 2014, she pleaded guilty to evidence tampering and drug possession. We were unable to subscribe you to WBUR Today. This is the story of Farak's drug-induced wrongdoings, and it's the story of the Massachusetts Attorney General's office apparently turning a blind eye on those wrongfully convicted because of Farak's mistakes. What Happened To Sonja From Netflix Drug Scandal Series - Refinery29 She purchased a home there in 2006. "All Defendant had to do to honor the Plaintiffs Brady rights was to turn over copies of documents that were obviously exculpatory as to the Farak defendants or accede to one of the repeated requests from counsel, including Plaintiffs counsel, that they be permitted to inspect the evidence seized from Faraks car," Robertson wrote in her ruling. Since then, she has kept a low profile. Thousands of convictions in thousands cases tainted by former state chemist Sonja Farak were ordered for dismissal today, marking a victory for justice after litigation from the ACLU of Massachusetts, the Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) who is the plaintiff and institutional petitioner on behalf of all parties impacted, and the law firm Fick & Marx LLP. Farak received a sentence of 18 months in jail and 5 years of probation. The responsibility of the mess that she created should also rest upon the shoulders of her workplace that allowed her the opportunity to indulge so freely in drugs in the first place. Perhaps, this desire for privacy, combined with Lindas age, is why she doesnt have much of a digital footprint. Get all the latest from Sanditon on GBH Passport, How one Brookline studio helps artists with disabilities thrive. Sonja Farak: Defendant Rafael Rodriguez died of drug overdose - MEAWW This not only led to people getting a reprieve from prison but also filing their own lawsuits against the injustice they had to suffer. So she turned to drugs, which . Annie Dookhan and Sonja Faraks crimes undermined the integrity of our justice system and impacted thousands of lives, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey said when the settlement was reached in June. NORTHAMPTON Sonja J. Farak told a nurse at the Western Massachusetts Regional Women's Correctional Center in Chicopee in December 2013 that she used methamphetamines and other stimulants "whenever she could get her hands on them." And since her job as a chemist was to test drug samples at a state drug lab in Amherst, that opportunity came daily. In fact, she was highly accomplished before all her struggles. In 2017, Rolando Penate filed a $5.7 million lawsuit against 18 defendants, including Farak. 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. The disclosure of potentially exculpatory evidence was particularly important, the report reads. According to a Rolling Stone profile on Farak and the case, the former chemist has not been heard from since her release. Sonja Farak was released on parole in 2016 and has remained out of the spotlight ever since. Sonja Farak, tasked with testing confiscated drugs inMassachusetts, was high on the job for years. Sonja Farak - Age, Family, Bio | Famous Birthdays You have been subscribed to WBUR Today. Farak admitted to being on a list of drugs while working between 2004 and her 2013 arrest. While confessed addict Farak was using confiscated drugs as her personal stash Dookhan wasn't even testing her drugs, just pushing all tests through as positive to impress her superiors with her speed and efficiency. Residents are advised to check for a notice in the mail. post office box as her contact information. Who is Sonja Farak? Sonja Farak is the former state drug lab chemist featured in Netflix's "How to Fix a Scandal." More drug cases tossed due to tainted chemist Annie Dookhan - Boston Herald Penate alleged Kaczmarek's actions violated his "Brady rights," which require prosecutors to turn over potentially exculpatory evidence to defense counsel. Her reporting focuses on mental health, criminal justice and education. After weeks of hearings, a "special hearing officer" selected by the board recommended potential sanctions against them all. She said early recovery was hard because finding employment and housing was difficult with a criminal record and having to pay court fees. Massachusetts board recommends disbarment for former prosecutor in drug Thousands to split $14M in Mass. drug lab scandal settlement chemist, Sonja Farak, had been battling drug addiction and had tampered with samples she was assigned to test around the time she tested the samples in Penate's case. She grew up in Portsmouth with her sister Amy.. How to Fix a Drug Scandal premiered on Netflix April 1, and it has told the compelling stories of Sonja Farak and Annie Dookhan. Robertson rejected Kaczmarek's claims she should not be held responsible for the turning over of exculpatory evidence because she was not part of the "prosecution team" in Penate's case. Judge dismisses 'qualified immunity' claim in suit against ex - WBUR As a teenager, she had attempted suicide. Sonja Farak was a chemist for a state crime lab in Massachusetts. . He went to bat for clients who were affected by both Farak and Dookhans misconduct. And now, three state prosecutors who investigated Farak are under investigation themselves by the states Board of Bar Overseers for their early handling of evidence. Powered by. The Netflix show highlights not only the arrest and trial of Farak, but also the missteps taken by the state to ignore the extent of the cases affected by Faraks actions. Camila Cabello And Shawn Mendes' Full Relationship, Everything To Know About Rihannas 2nd Pregnancy, Stars Who Got Their Start on Reality TV Shows, These Pregnant Celebrities Have Due Dates In 2023, See Blake Shelton's Throwback Pic With Reba, Meghan Trainor Says She 'Can't Walk' After Sex, Five Dead Giveaways Tell Burglars You're Not Home, 40 Things You Can Buy On Amazon For Under $10. In the series, it's explained that Farak loved the energy the meth gave her. I think it's very painful to be Sonja and I regret having to advocate against her, Ryan said in the docuseries. Its almost as if somebody would take the worst part of my life and show it to millions of people.. I mean she could have been my client.". Don Treeger/The Republican via AP, Pool, File. Within a year of working at the new lab, Farak began doing drugs. Farak pleaded guilty in 2014 of stealing drugs and tampering with evidence, setting off a second. She remained a football fan, and loved the Patriots. 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. Heres what you need to know about Sonja Farak: Farak was born on January 13, 1978, in Rhode Island to Stanley and Linda Farak. Regarding the cases that she had handled, the Massachusetts courts threw out every case in the Amherst lab during her tenure. She tested . Farak was well (Long, 2021) educated, participated in sports, was married, owned a home, did not have a criminal record, and held a respectable job . She married Lee after starting her job, but their marriage was rocky. By some accounts, she is 68 years old. 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. 2. Sonja Farak grew up with an interest in sports, and a desire to do well in life. ", SCOTUS Now Just Another Congressional Committee, Trump Ramps up Attacks on DeSantis: 'Dropping Like a Rock', Russian Strikes on Pavlohrad Aim to Hamper Ukraine's Counteroffensive, Greg Abbott Criticized for Response to Texas Shooting: 'A New Low', Democrat Sold First Republic Stock, Bought JP Morgan Before Collapse, Conservative Influencers Struggle With Countering Biden's Messaging. Episode 1. The difference? Her mother and sister seem to show no empathy for anyone involved in the cases of Sonja Farak, and only seem to be concerned with how the . Farak admitted in testimony that she began using drugs almost as soon as she started working at the Massachusetts State Crime Lab in Amherst. On the surface, their crimes dont seem as injurious and they dont seem to enjoy inflicting pain on others. She confided in her therapist that all the drugs she was consuming came from her workplace. Furthermore, she said she has been grappling with how the docuseries may have affected Faraks life. She said, It was about coping; it certainly wasnt about having fun; I dont think shes had fun in quite a while.. She has pledged to dismiss Suffolk County drug convictions an estimated 74,800 for anyone whose drug certification was done at the Hinton Lab between May 2003 and August 2012. Extent of Massachusetts lab's forensics failure revealed Linda Farak is currently in her 60s. Ex-Chemist In Massachusetts Was High On Drugs At Work For 8 Years I think shes a good person, she said. Drug lab cases information | Mass.gov She has kept a low profile but has been spotted in court for civil cases related to her own case, including in 2018. Farak also had an apparent obsession for her therapists husband, as she was reported to have a folder that shed put together about him, documenting her obsession. Now the Board of Bar Overseers special hearing officer concluded that there were numerous lapses, oversights, intentional misconduct and rule violations by Kaczmarek, Verner and Foster. Penate argued the court should follow those findings. Though viewers won't hear from Farak directly due to a pending civil case, the series paints a vivid picture of Farak's drug use through dramatization. She looked into the western area of the state because it was less expensive and less hectic. Where is Farak today? She began working there in 2004 and enjoyed that it was more laid back than the job at Hinton. In fact, she was the first girl in the state of Rhode Island to play high school football in a public school system. He recommended she lose her law license for two years; the Office of Bar Counsel later argued Kaczmarek should be disbarred. Why did she do that and where has it left her? However, it must be said that Linda has maintained a straight backbone about the entire matter. The prosecutors have been tied to the drug lab scandal involving disgraced former state chemist Sonja Farak, who admitted to stealing and using drugs from an Amherst state lab. Penate is just one of the thousands of people whose cases were affected by Faraks actions. Its no big deal, 14-year-old Farak said to the Panama City News Herald. An ex-lab chemist Sonja Farak's negligence and misdeeds shocked US when she was arrested in 2013 for stealing and using drugs from the lab where she worked. 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. A scandal erupts, raising questions for the thousands of defendants in her cases. and landed a job at the Amherst state drug lab, Farak still felt "alien and unseen, a ghost floating through her own life," per Rolling Stone. If the judge determines that it is fair, a settlement administrator will send out checks. Despite her status as a free woman (who has seemingly disappeared from the public eye), Farak's wrongdoings continue to make waves in the Massachusetts courts. But Westcott said she paid a variety of fees, such as $65 monthly probation costs and $500 to get her drivers license, before the SJC dismissed her three possession cases in 2018. Jasmine Gomez is the Commerce Editor at Womens Health, where she cover the best product recommendations across beauty, health, lifestyle, fitness, and more. Farak was born in San Diego, California and within a year her family moved to Newport, Rhode Island after her Navy father was transferred to the east coast.
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