An Indianapolis man has filed a lawsuit against the city’s Metropolitan Police Department alleging he was beaten when cops thought he was on drugs. The man’s behavior, he says, was caused by a seizure disorder, something his sister told the officers as they tried to arrest him mid-seizure. [Read more…]
Evidence Mishandled Again in Homicide Case Against Cop
For the second time, Indianapolis Police are under fire for mishandling the evidence in a case where a cop is accused of driving his squad car into motorcyclists while he was allegedly drunk, killing one. Community members, leaders, and even other cops are calling for a major shake-up within the department. [Read more…]
Audit of State Crime Lab Abruptly Halted
A few months ago we reported about problems within the state crime lab, where It had been discovered that numerous drug tests had been flawed. The three-person panel, appointed by Governor Mitch Daniels recommended and immediate audit to get scope on the extent of the issue. Now, however, the audit has been called off and it’s not clear if we’ll ever know just how bad the problems were. [Read more…]
Indiana Crime Lab Problems Reach Back to At Least 2004
The state crime toxicology lab is under fire, as we reported last month. And as more and more information about the problems become available, it’s obvious the lab had been struggling for many years. The Indianapolis Star reports this week that 2,000 emails dated from as early as 2003 reveal errors and also reveal a lab supervisor who was trying to speak up, trying to get help for the lab. [Read more…]
Indiana Toxicology Crime Lab Under Fire
In 2008, a new director was named to the Indiana State Department of Toxicology. Immediately Michael Wagner noticed problems. He was the first forensic toxicologist to head the department in more than a decade and this could have been the reason problems were so apparent to him. Soon after taking office he decided to do an audit and since then the issue has been coming to a head. [Read more…]