Possible Drug Testing Problems at St. Paul Crime Lab Could Delay Trials, Reduce Charges

Potential problems with drug testing in the St. Paul Police Department’s crime lab could lead to trial delays, and possibly reduced charges, in cases against Dakota County defendants awaiting prosecution on drug offenses.

Chief prosecutors in Dakota, Ramsey and Washington counties announced in a statement Wednesday that all drugs previously tested by the lab in pending cases will be retested.

About 350 to 400 cases could be affected, according to an article from the Star Tribune. The Pioneer Press reports that more than 3,600 drug cases were filed in the past four years in Dakota, Ramsey and Washington counties, and many used evidence analyzed in the St. Paul crime lab.

The lab handled more than 16,000 cases and processed more than 200,000 pieces of evidence total between 2007 and 2011, the Star Tribune reports.

In addition, drug task forces and law enforcement agencies in the three counties will no longer send suspected drugs to the St. Paul lab for testing, but will instead use the services of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said the statement from Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom, Ramsey County Attorney John Choi and Washington County Attorney Peter Orput.

“We believe that our responsibilities as prosecutors require us to take appropriate actions to enable justice in past, pending and future cases,” said the joint statement from the attorneys.

“In addition, we seek to ensure the public confidence in the criminal justice system and provide leadership when it is appropriate. We will continue to assist our partners in law enforcement as they develop new procedures to ensure proper analytical testing of evidence.”

Dakota County began using the St. Paul crime lab for testing in drug cases in 2005, the Pioneer Press reports; retesting likely will be possible in many cases because the Dakota County Drug Task Force has kept evidence from cases since 2007, the article says.

But the newly announced policies could mean that some more serious drug charges will be reduced if drug samples in pending cases are not sufficient to retest them, the county attorneys said in their Wednesday statement.

Earlier this year, two public defenders filed a motion alleging that the St. Paul Police Department’s crime lab is out of step with best-practice procedures in drug testing. The attorneys testified at a hearing last month that the lab doesn’t have written standard operating procedures, doesn’t document when someone accesses its drug evidence vault and does not conduct ongoing proficiency testing for its staff.

The motion was filed on behalf of Matthew D. Jensen, who was charged in 2009 in Dakota County with felony fifth-degree drug possession and possession of drug paraphernalia, which is a petty misdemeanor.

Seven other cases under the same two public defenders will be heard in August and September, with a judge’s decision expected late this year.

Backstrom said earlier this summer that the three counties were aware of the possible deficiencies in the crime lab as early as last February. 

“It is unfortunate that we are in the position of having to take corrective action due to the troubling issues that have come to light in the St. Paul Police Department crime lab as it relates to drug cases,” the county attorneys’ statement said. “… [But] as difficult as it may be, as ministers of justice, we accept the challenge in these cases and embrace the opportunity to improve the system.”

Continuances will be sought in all pending drug cases in Dakota, Ramsey and Washington counties to allow time for retesting the confiscated drugs, according to the statement. St. Paul Police Department officials have agreed to pay any overtime costs associated with the retesting by the BCA.

Read the Star Tribune article and Pioneer Press article for more details.