DEWITT, Mich. – A former director of Michigan State Police Forensic Science addressed the serious allegations FOX 17 uncovered, which accuse the Attorney General’s office and state prosecutors of influencing state police crime labs to falsely report marijuana; essentially turning misdemeanors into felonies.
Former MSP Forensic Science Director John Collins told FOX 17 that he resigned from this role in 2012 due, in part, to these crime lab reporting issues: politics working to trump science.
“In my experience, it was just a non-stop political game that really got frustrating, and it wore down the morale of our staff, and it quite honestly, it wore me down.”
Collins served as director 2010 through 2012, when he said he surprised the agency by resigning; even after the 2012 success of helping earn MSP Forensic Science international accreditation with the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board.
“It was really a big deal for me to let people understand that our laboratories were not in the prosecution business, they’re not in the conviction business, they’re in the science business,” said Collins.
“And if we don’t position ourselves as being in the science business, then we really start to go down a path that’s going to lead us to a lot of trouble. And that was very tough, because that was a major cultural, a different kind of a cultural message than had really been communicated before.”
Collins said forensic science is his passion. He is now president of The Forensic Foundations Group, a consultant, and publishes articles quarterly in Crime Lab Report: Media and public policy analysis for the forensic science community. Last March, Collins also published an article in Forensic Science Policy & Management: An International Journal, and depicted how a utopian forensic crime lab would operate, which he said is quite different than state labs.
“There is a lot of politics that is involved in these cases,” said Collins.
“So even if the state police was to really kind of buck the trend, and say, ‘look, these laboratories are scientific organizations, they’re not law firms, okay, and we’re not going to let them become law firms,’ even if they kind of buck that trend, you can bet that there’s going to be some angry prosecutors that are going to call the Governor’s office and complain. It’s like kicking over a bee’s nest.”
Lorincz, an Ottawa County father, is the defendant whose case FOX 17 has covered since February. Lorincz, a card-carrying patient, is charged with a felony for having a “smear” amount medical marijuana, in the form of Butane Hash Oil.
“An accreditation assessor would have a problem would probably look at this and have a problem with why would you even say anything like this?” Collins said, looking at the crime report’s phrase, “origin unknown.”
After review of Lorincz’s crime lab report, Collins said he is not surprised to see the ambiguous results.
“Even though I don’t know the nature of what occurred within the state police, any time that scientists, or administrators of scientific operations, if they would intentionally try to create ambiguity to create a political advantage is beyond unacceptable,” said Collins.
Collins explained it is appropriate for prosecutors to explain state statutes to crime labs, or what elements constitute a crime. However, he said for any prosecutors or other officials to tamper with science is illegal.
“One thing that we do not do, or should not do, is try to widen the gray area so that we create more ambiguity so that more possibilities are on the table,” said Collins. “That’s not science, that politics.
Yet their responses appear to be blanket statements. Both agencies defer to the other: MSP public affairs officials wrote that it is up to the prosecutors to charge crimes, and then PAAM president wrote it is up to the crime labs to report science.
FOX 17 has reached out to the Attorney General’s office for comment, and has yet to hear back.
As for the defendant in this case, Max Lorincz told FOX 17 Friday that he wants the prosecutor held accountable. Lorincz also questioned the amount of money that has been spent in court over this case, and asked for justification of his felony charge.
OTTAWA COUNTY, MI – An attorney claims prosecutors pressured state police crime labs to change the way THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, is reported in an effort to circumvent Michigan’s medical marijuana law.
Michael Komorn alleges scientists were told to report an unknown origin for THC contained in oil, wax or perhaps a brownie if no visible plant material was present. The THC would then be declared a synthetic substance rather than marijuana – turning a misdemeanor pot charge to a two-year felony.
“The crime lab is systematically biased towards falsely reporting Schedule 1 synthetic THC, a felony, instead of plant-based marijuana, a misdemeanor, ” Komorn, a Southfield attorney known for handling medical marijuana cases, told The Grand Rapids Press and MLive.
In the case of Max Lorincz, a 35-year-old Spring Lake man with a medical marijuana card, the change could turn him into a felon, Komorn said.
Lorincz’s troubles started in September 2014 after calling 911 for medical assistance for his wife. A police officer responded and spotted a small amount – “a smudge,” Komorn said – of hash oil.
Ottawa County prosecutors charged him in January with marijuana possession, a misdemeanor. He refused to plead guilty because he was a valid medical marijuana user. The charge was dropped in February, only to be replaced by the felony synthetic THC charge.
Komorn used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain numerous emails from state police crime lab workers, some raising concern about the way they had to report THC cases. Others testified in court about the new policy of denying evidence of THC coming from a marijuana plant if no material is found.
He contends that the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan and state Attorney General Bill Schuette, an opponent of medical marijuana, influenced state police policy.
“It is scandalous, scandalous. How can you trust the state lab when they are influenced by politicians?” he said.
State police said in a statement: “The ultimate decision on what to charge an individual with rests with the prosecutor. The role of the laboratory is to determine whether marihuana or THC are present. Michigan state police laboratory policy was changed to include the statement “origin unknown” when it is not possible to determine if THC originates from a plant (marihuana) or synthetic means. This change makes it clear that the source of the THC should not be assumed from the lab results.”
Ottawa County Prosecutor Ronald Frantz could not be reached for comment.
A hearing in Lorincz’s case is set for Nov. 9 in Ottawa County Circuit Court.
In an email Komorn obtained from authorities, a state police crime lab supervisor, Kyle Hoskins, said examiners need to see plant material because they would have no idea how it was produced unless they watched its production. He noted the debate and asked the opinion of Ken Stecker of the Prosecuting Attorney Association of Michigan, who reportedly responded: “That is my opinion, THC is a schedule 1 drug regardless of where it comes from. I hope that helps. Ken.”
Lt. James Pierson, director of the Grand Rapids laboratory, said that police are finding a “significant amount of THC wax and oil,” which he said are not covered by the medical marijuana law.
If police seize wax or oil from a medical marijuana patient, and the lab test identifies the substance as marijuana, rather than delta-1-THC, there is no probable cause to arrest, Pierson said in an email referenced by Komorn in court filings.
He said he learned that if a “speck” of plant material is in the oil, the test will come back as marijuana.
“Is there any way to get this changed? Our prosecutors are willing to argue that one speck of marijuana does not turn the larger quantity of oil/wax into marijuana,” Pierson wrote.
Bradley Choate, supervisor of the Controlled Substances Unit in Lansing, disagreed with the changes. He said analysts are left with two choices when finding THC: identify it as marijuana, which is a misdemeanor for possession, or a synthetic equivalent of THC, which is a felony if possessed.
“There is not a third choice,” Choate wrote. “The question then becomes is the THC from a natural source, i.e., marihuana, or a synthetic source. The presence of other cannabinoids indicates that the substance is from a natural source. I don’t know of any other way to determine that THC was synthesized unless a lab was found and the pre cursor substances to make THC were present.”
He said prosecutors rely on their reports in filing charges. A report that says delta-1-THC with no explanation would lead a prosecutor to think the substance was synthetic.
“This could lead to the wrong charge of possession of synthetic THC and the ultimate wrongful conviction of an individual. For the laboratory to contribute to this possible miscarriage of justice would be a huge black eye for the Division and the Department.”
As forensic scientists, Choate said they had to apply science to the law.
“I have a problem with the procedure manual stating that a conclusion of marihuana cannot be stated in the report. … The conclusion is incorrect because the resins are Marihuana. Apparently analysts in our system (are) hung up on the fact that to identify marihuana they need to see plant material.”
Choate said that “Guiding Principles” training says “that ‘Conclusions are based on the evidence and the reference material relevant to the evidence, not on extraneous information, political pressure, or other outside influences.”
“When we made the previous changes I made it very apparent that I did not agree with it. One of my concerns was that by reporting out THC instead of marijuana it would lead Prosecutors charging people with synthetic THC. This appears to be what the agency wants. The question I would pose to all of our analysts is how they would answer questions on the stand.
“In the scenario described how would they answer the question that absent the plant material speck, in their opinion is the rest of the wax material marihuana or not and in their opinion is the THC identified synthetic or natural? Again the legal definition of marihuana includes the resinous extract which contains cannabinoids and we can identify those cannabinoids.”
A Michigan medical-marijuana patient claims in court papers that state police crime labs are bending to pressure from prosecutors in analyzing marijuana samples, leading to harsher punishments.
Maxwell Lorincz, 35, was originally charged with a possessions misdemeanor for a small amount of marijuana oil after a Sept. 2014 arrest during an emergency call to his home, according to court papers. He contested the charge, due to his status as a legal medical-marijuana patient. It was dropped in January. But a month later he was charged again – and due to a laboratory finding that the oil could be synthetic THC, it was increased to a felony charge with potential prison time under Michigan law.
Lorincz’s attorney Michael Komorn alleges the lab engaged in perjury, evidence tampering, and even “rampant illegality” in considering the sample synthetic, due to pressure from prosecutors, they contend in the latest court papers filed Oct. 24.
“The Crime Lab was transformed into a Crime Factory which had the direct effect of stripping, in this case Mr. Lorincz, and other patients or caregivers statewide the State authorization to the entitlement to immunity, from arrest, prosecution, or any penalty associated with the medical use of (marijuana),” contends Komorn in the latest motion.
The latest filings, obtained by Forensic Magazine, include emails between lab staff, produced by a Freedom of Information Act request. The emails show that the scientists Michigan State Police Crime Lab found the hash oil was “Schedule I THC” from “origin unknown” – mostly because the analysts contend it showed no visible plant material. Prosecutors then brought the felony charge, based on the finding the THC could be synthetic.
However, the defense attorneys argue that there were multiple other naturally-occurring cannabinoids in the sample which are not psychoactive – and would be pointless to synthesize.
In one of the internal emails, a forensic scientist wrote to his colleagues at the lab that the origin “could not be determined,” and outlined some of the policy repercussions.
“Also, by going out on that limb and calling it THC, you now jump from a misdemeanor to a felony charge,” wrote the analyst. “We’re bringing this up because there seemed to be some concern about uniformity in making these calls.
“Further, it is highly doubtful that any of these Med. Mari. (sp) products we are seeing have THC that was synthesized,” the analyst added. “This would be completely impractical. We are most likely seeing naturally occurring THC extracted from the plant!”
The Michigan Attorney General’s Office and the Ottawa County Prosecutor’s Office did not return calls from Forensic Magazine.
“Any accusation that the Lab and PAAM are directing lab personnel to report crimes without evidence is untrue,” Michael Wendling, the Association’s President reportedly said in a prepared statement.
SPRING LAKE, Mich. – The defense representing a Spring Lake father facing a felony marijuana charge is accusing Michigan State Police Forensic Science Division crime labs of misreporting marijuana intentionally. It’s an allegation with statewide implications.
FOX 17 first reported Max Lorincz’s case in February: He’s a card-carrying medical marijuana patient. He was charged with felony possession of synthetic tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) for having a smear amount of butane hash oil (BHO).
“If nobody stands up for this and it just keeps going the way it is, how many more people are going to get thrown under the bus just for using their prescribed medicine?” asked Lorincz. “It’s just ridiculous.”
Lorincz said BHO, which is made from marijuana resins, is a prescription he uses for debilitating pain. On an unrelated medical emergency call for his wife, law enforcement found a smear of BHO in his family’s home. Now, in part as a result of the charges, Lorincz has lost custody of his six-year-old son, restricted to supervised public visits for the past several months.
After FOX 17 reported his case, attorney Michael Komorn at Komorn Law PLLC took Lorincz’s case pro bono.
Komorn said MSP crime labs, along with the Michigan attorney general’s office and the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan, changed crime lab reporting policies for reporting marijuana back in 2013. Based on documents and emails received through the Freedom of Information Act, Komorn said state laboratories are falsely reporting marijuana as synthetic THC, essentially turning a misdemeanor charge into a felony.
“What is unique about this case is that they [the prosecution] are relying on the lab to report these substances so that they can escalate these crimes from misdemeanors to felonies,” said Komorn.
First charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession, Lorincz refused to plead guilty because he is a card-carrying medical marijuana patient. According to the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act, this charge can be dropped through Section 4 immunity, or Section 8 by asserting an affirmative defense.
However, the Ottawa County prosecutor charged Lorincz with felony synthetic THC possession, relying on the state lab report results from his BHO.
According to Lorincz’s crime lab report, technicians deemed his BHO to be “residue, delta-1-Tetrahydrocannabinol, schedule 1,” then the phrase, “origin unknown.”
The state lab scientist testified in an earlier April preliminary exam that they could not determine whether Lorincz’s BHO was natural or synthetic. However, the prosecution charged him with felony synthetic THC possession.
“When you have a laboratory that is looking at a substance and reporting it in a way that makes it a Schedule 1 instead of the marijuana they know it is, it’s creating a crime,” said Komorn.
“This is a lie,” Komorn said. “We have emails within the state laboratory communications indicating this, that they know it’s unlikely, more than unlikely near an impossible, that the patients and caregivers are in a laboratory synthesizing THC. It’s not happening, yet they report it as such.”
Komorn filed motions in Ottawa County Circuit Court in this case earlier this week. His firm is stating that the crime labs and prosecution are reporting “bogus crimes,” turning crime labs into a “crime factory.” He stands firm that the prosecution has no credible evidence to charge or convict Lorincz, especially since the state lab scientist testified they cannot prove the substance to be natural or synthetic.
“The lab as far as I’m concerned has lost its integrity,” said Komorn.
“You can’t play around with this type of thing and make stuff up and create crimes and be influenced by what the prosecutors want you to do and then come to court, take an oath, and expect to be received as an expert in forensic science. You’ve lost that.”
FOX 17 reached out to Michigan State Police for comment. The MSP public affairs department for the office of the director released this statement to FOX 17:
“The ultimate decision on what to charge an individual with rests with the prosecutor. The role of the laboratory is to determine whether marihuana or THC are present. Michigan state police laboratory policy was changed to include the statement “origin unknown” when it is not possible to determine if THC originates from a plant (marihuana) or synthetic means. This change makes it clear that the source of the THC should not be assumed from the lab results.”
FOX 17 has also reached out to the Michigan attorney general’s office and Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan for comment.
The motions filed in court are calling for an evidentiary hearing Nov. 5.
Posted 7:45 PM, October 28, 2015, by Dana Chicklas
Judge disqualifies all 250 prosecutors because of widespread corruption
Orange County, California. With more than 3 million residents, it’s larger than 21 states. If Orange County were a separate country, its economy would be the 45th largest in the world.
Now known for Disneyland, the county may soon be known for having one of the most corrupt justice systems in the world. The width and depth and duration of the corruption truly boggles the mind. A case that should’ve been open and shut has blown the lid off some deep secrets.
On October 12, 2011, Orange County experienced the deadliest mass killing in its modern history.
Scott Dekraai killed 8 people, including his ex-wife, in a Seal Beach beauty salon. He was arrested wearing full body armor just a few blocks away. Without a doubt, Dekraai was the perpetrator. A dozen surviving witnesses saw him. He admitted to the shooting early on.
Yet, nearly four years later, the case against him has all but fallen apart.
It turns out that prosecutors and police officers committed an egregious violation of Dekraai’s rights—so much so that Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals shocked everyone and removed the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, and all 250 prosecutors, from having anything more to do with the case.
It turns out that Orange County has a secret system of evidence manufacturing and storage that they have used in countless cases, and the collusion is unraveling dozens of cases and may soon unravel the careers of countless prosecutors and law enforcement officers who’ve maintained it for decades. It’s called TRED.
For a quarter of a century, OCSD management deemed TRED beyond the reach of any outside authority. In Dekraai, deputies Ben Garcia and Seth Tunstall committed perjury to hide the mere existence of TRED. Those lies didn’t originate from blind loyalty, however. The concealed records show how prosecution teams slyly trampled the constitutional rights of defendants by employing informants—and then keeping clueless judges, juries and defense lawyers.
Since February 2014, the district attorney’s office has asked to disqualify Goethals—a former homicide prosecutor and defense attorney—in 57 cases, according to court records.
In 2011, records show, prosecutors made disqualification requests against Goethals just three times. In 2012, zero times. In 2013, only twice.
So egregious are the violations that the Public Defenders Office filed this 500+ page motion detailing instance after instance of cases where men and women have had their essential rights violated.
“Not a single prosecutor or officer has been held accountable for the illegal and unethical conduct that has taken place”
