Her role was to test for the presence of illegal substances, which could be instrumental in thousands of drug related legal cases. Despite being a star child of the family, Sonja suffered from the mental illnesses that haunted her even in adulthood. Obviously, after a blunder of such scale, no one would want their samples checked from the same lab. At the time of her arrest, she had resided in 37 Laurel Park in Northampton. She was convicted to 18 months behind bars, followed by five years of probation and 500 hours of community services, the same year. Faraks therapist, Anna Kogan, wrote in her notes that Farak was worried about Nikki finding out about her addiction as well as the possible legal issues if she were ever caught. The case notoriously involved a rare one . These simple statements can be easily overlooked, which is why it is important that audiences are aware of the impact that these women had on criminal justice history. We allege that this chemist tampered with evidence, placing the integrity of that evidence in question, Coakley said in a statement. She disclosed to her therapist that all the drugs she was consuming came from her workplace. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Obsessed with Netflix? The staff in the new lab was also doubled, and the number of trainees was also increased. 7:29 PM EST, Sun January 20, 2013. Would love your thoughts, please comment. Carr said that Farak is a private person. Sonja Farak's net worth is estimated to be between $1 million and $5 million in 2020. Netflixs How to Fix a Drug Scandal Story: 5 Fast Facts. Another chemist was accused of tampering, affecting 34,000 drug cases, in October. YouTube Kaczmarek is one of three former prosecutors whose role in the prosecution of Farak later became the focus of several lawsuits and disciplinary hearings. The charges against Penate were dismissed after Farak's conviction. Inwardly though, Sonja Farak was striving. He confronted Farak, she denied knowing anything about it, and he, in the face of that denial, . The newest true crime series from Netflix, How to Fix a Drug Scandal, was released on April 1, 2020. The number is888-999-2881. Where is Sonja now? She was sentenced in 2014 to 18 months in prison and 5 years of probation. Not only was she under the impact of drugs while at work for about nine years, but she was also under the impact when she took the stand in 2013. "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. The pair's actions saw around 44,000 drug convictions overturned and resulted in prison sentences for the pair. Northampton, MA 01060 For information on how to obtain relief through the class action lawsuit, please contact the attorneys representing the class, as provided below: LukeRyan This Board of Bar Overseers report comes as Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins last week said shes asking the states highest court to toss thousands of convictions for which evidence was processed at the now-disgraced Hinton lab. appreciated. More than that, she sinks her teeth into the ones that are chock-full of scandalous details. In the first episode, audiences are revealed a very important fact about television - drug chemists arent actually a thing on television. RELATED:Wicked Good: 10 Great Movies Set In Boston. The four-part Netflix series goes deep into the story of a man named Rolando Penate, a case Farak had handled at the lab. As extensively detailed in How to Fix a Drug Scandal, Farak was arrested on January 19, 2013. Former chemist Annie Dookhan was convicted in 2013 on charges of improperly testing drug evidence at a drug lab in Boston. Sonja Farak was a chemist at a state drug lab in Amherst, Massachusetts, from 2005 to 2013. Farak worked at the Amherst Lab since the summer of 2004 and she started taking the labs drugs soon after. Massachusetts chemist accused of tampering with evidence, drug possession, Sonja Farak took heroin, cocaine from evidence inventory, attorney general alleges, Another chemist was accused of tampering, affecting 34,000 drug cases, in October. While Dookhan had tampered with evidence and indulged in dry-labbing, Farak stole from her workplace. Those are things that cause people, including my clients, to make choices that negatively impact themselves and others. In Massachusetts it doesn't even end there. Sincevery few people willingly dabble in drugs, its more of a question to ask why is this person using drugs to begin with? This is even further legitimized when it's revealed Sonja Farak was dealing with depression since she was 16 years old. A former state chemist, Sonja Farak, made headlines in 2013 when she was arrested for stealing and using drugs from a laboratory. Netflix Pandemic doctor believes he's stumbled on 20-minute coronavirus cure. The civil lawsuit was one of the last tied to prosecutors' disputed handling of the case against disgraced ex-chemist Sonja Farak, who was convicted in 2014 of ingesting drug samples she was . "No reasonablejury could conclude that this evidence is not favorable.". WilliamW. Fick They wrote that she served 13 months and was paroled sometime in 2015. Mass.gov is a registered service mark of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Yet, the cases of Sonja Farak and Annie Dookhanbecame "one of the largest mass dismissals of criminal convictions in United States history." So she turned to drugs, which were incredibly easy to procure. Hints of difficulties to come were not obvious as a child, at least not from the outside. Since the takeover, the budget for all forensic labs across the state has been increased, by around twenty-five per cent. Farak is one of two Massachusetts drug lab technicians who were caught tainting evidence that was . Previously to her arrest, Farak lived in Laurel Park, Northampton in Massachusetts. The lawsuit names Kaczmarek, Farak and three members of the state police. In high school, she nearly died by suicide, and in college Farak was hospitalized. Penate is just one of the thousands of people whose cases were affected by Faraks actions. Sonja Farak. Farak was addicted to the drugs she was testing and was accused of smoking crack "10 to 12 times a day, including during work" at a lab in Amherst, according to a state probe. According to a newspaper article from 1992, she was the first female in Rhode Island to be on a high school football team. There was something so tragic but also surreal about this story.. 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. 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. Over 40,000 drug convictions were excluded due to Annie Dookhan and Sonja Faraks criminal misconduct (both were sentenced for their crimes). In "How to Fix a Drug Scandal," a new four-part Netflix docuseries, documentary filmmaker Erin Lee Carr presents the stories of Massachusetts drug lab chemists Annie Dookhan and Sonja Farak, and . The dilemma went beyond Farak, which How to Fix a Drug Scandal deeply explores. While attending college, she met her longtime partner Nikki Lee. 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. Sonja Farak's actions also tell a tragic but riveting tale of addiction and how far it can push a person. In order to cover her tracks, per Rolling Stone and the Netflix doc, Farak would add ersatz powder to some of the drug samples she used. Massachusetts prosecutor tied to Sonja Farak, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Massachusetts prosecutor tied to Sonja Farak drug lab scandal actively misled others: Report, Greek stationmaster arrested in head-on train crash; 36 dead, Cops say man sprayed MBTA passenger with unknown liquid, Passenger in 2021 Green Line collision sues MBTA for $44K, Pair in alleged carjack, toddler abduction held on high bail, scandal led to the dismissal of thousands of drug convictions, Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins last week said shes asking the states highest court to toss thousands of convictions, Massachusetts snowstorm will spark 'hazardous conditions,' schools closing for snow day, Boston Police seize 37 dirt bikes and mopeds, recover fentanyl and guns, and arrest 4 after 'illegal drag racing' investigation, Battenfeld: Origins of COVID the latest "conspiracy theory" proved right, Healey's plan to cut capital gains, death tax, meets quick backlash. Ove. She started off doing drugs at work regularly she worked while on meth, liquid amphetamine, LSD, coke and crack. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. (The Massachusetts 2017 group exoneration involving chemist Annie Dookhan took place at the main lab.) A Warner Bros. In December 2011, Springfield, Massachusetts police arrested Rolando Penate for allegedly selling heroin, and the drugs were sent off to be tested by then-35-year-old drug lab chemist Sonja Farak . She had been accused of "intentional infliction of emotional distress in addition to the conspiracy to violate [Penate's] civil rights.". Many people watching the show are wondering: where is Sonja Farak now? After she was caught, Farak pleaded guilty to stealing drugs from the lab and was sentenced to prison time of 18 months. 1. Commonwealth Magazine - After rare public trial, disciplinary case now in hands of hearing officer THE JANUARY 2013 drug arrest of disgraced Massachusetts state chemist Sonja Farak and its impact on thousands of drug cases was widely reported as it unfolded, and memorialized to devastating effect in Netflix's docu-series How to Fix a Drug Scandal. As How to Fix a Drug Scandal explores, Farak had long struggled with her mental . Without ever absolving these two women, Carr finds something tragic in . Massachusetts could get another snowstorm Friday: What areas were the jackpot zones in this past storm? Netflix's documentary titled 'How to Fix a Drug Scandal' looks into the . 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. As of May 19, 2020, allclaimsfor relief due to an invalidated conviction as a result of the misconduct of Sonya Farak and Annie Dookhancan no longer bebrought through an individual motion process. It gave me energy. [6] How to Fix a Drug Scandal depicts the role of former Attorney General of Massachusetts Martha Coakley, who was accused of political cover up. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. 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. If you can't get enough of true crime documentaries, Netflix is your best friend. Investigators gave that information to Kaczmarek and the state AG's office,according tohearings before thestate board that disciplines attorneys. Discovery Company. Sonja Farak, of Northampton, a former chemist at the state crime lab in Amherst, appears in Hampshire Superior Court in Northampton in April 2013 for her arraignment on multiple counts of evidence . How to Fix A Drug Scandal is Netflix's latest intriguing documentary series, and these are 10 details everyone missed. Copyright 2023 by Vizaca. RELATED:The 10 Best Football Movies Ever Made, According to Rotten Tomatoes. After Faraks arrest in 2013, police found pages of mental health worksheets in her car indicating she'd struggled with drug addiction since at least 2011. 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. Sonja Farak's stature. Who is Sonja Farak, the former state drug lab chemist featured in the show? She was ultimately sentenced to 18 months in prison in 2014. After serving just a year of her 18 month sentence, Farak was released from prison in 2015. It features the true story of Sonja Farak, a former state drug lab chemist in Massachusetts who was arrested in 2013 for consuming the drugs she was supposed to test and tampering with the evidence to cover up her tracks. It's rare for the key players of a story to involve mostly women, butthey werein this case. In 2019, the former chemist was seen attending a civil case at a federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts. This documentary mini-series follows the stories of these two drug lab chemists, one in Boston and one in Amherst, and how their mistakes led to the wrongful convictions of over 30,000 people. The depths of her thefts and addiction are explored over the course of the series. Faraks findings, and occasional testimony at court about her testing, was used as proof to convict the person who had been arrested. While she reached out to her family to let them know that the docuseries was coming out, she hasnt spoken to Farak and doesnt know much about her current life. She Was Born in 1978 & Raised in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. While what she did was immoral, many have been sympathetic to her plight. [1] The premise revolves around documentary filmmaker Erin Lee Carr following the effects of crime drug lab chemists Sonja Farak and Annie Dookhan and their tampering with evidence and its aftereffects. Since her release, she has kept a low profile and managed to stay out of the public eye. She tested . 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. The medical records stated that she did not have an existing drug problem that was amplified by her access to more substances. This arrest comes just three months after the arrest of Annie Dookhan, a former Massachusetts chemist at the William A. Hinton State Laboratory in Jamaica Plain, who is charged with obstruction of justice, mishandling of drug evidence and lying about holding a masters degree in chemistry from the University of Massachusetts. This achievement earned her a full page layout in the local paper and some local TV news coverage. The feedback will only be used for improving the website. Sonja Farak, 35, has been accused of mishandling drug evidence, the attorney general's office said Sunday. Sonja Farak (left) leaving the courthouse with her lawyer. However, throughout her time at the lab, Sonja was habitually abusing these substances for personal use and carried out her role whilst high on liquid methamphetamine, cocaine, LSD and even crack. Farak, a chemist at the Massachusetts State Crime Laboratory in Amherst, was arrested in 2013. The place was closed as soon as Faraks crimes came to light. Shortly into her role at Amherst, Farak decided to try liquid methamphetamine to ease her personal struggles. Sonja Farak: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know. Farak trabaj en el laboratorio Amherst desde el verano de 2004 y poco despus comenz a tomar las drogas del laboratorio. 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. She worked there for a year but soon understood she wouldnt make sufficient money there in the Boston area to buy a house. Farak saw Kogan in 2009 and 2010, and her therapist wrote: She obtains the drugs from her job at the state drug lab, by taking portions of samples that have come in to be tested., Kogan also wrote that Farak told her she had taken methamphetamines at another lab in an old job, but she didnt get much from it. Kogan wrote that after moving to western [Massachusetts] for her job at the state drug lab, [Farak] tried it again and really liked it. I felt euphoric, Kogan wrote of Farak. Farak also used her position in the lab to manufacture her own drugs for personal use. An official website of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, This page, Drug lab cases information, is. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. You can check your records electronically by following this link:https://icori.chs.state.ma.us. post office box as her contact information. 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. As . Farak was smoking crack 10 to 12 times a day. Sonja had stolen samples from her colleagues' tests and amended the lab database to cover her tracks. "I was smoking in the lab, I was smoking at home. Copies of the notice letter, in English, Spanish, and other languages, are posted below. A search of her bag later showed the ingredients for cooking her own cocaine: baking soda, candle wax, and modeling clay, along with utensils that she could use to make it. While Dookhan spoiled evidence in the favor of the prosecution, Farak smoked it. As the docuseries represents, she confessed to a therapist in 2009 that she had been striving with addiction problems since 2005. Although she establish a passion for science, graduated from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 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. "No reasonable individual could have failed to appreciate the unlawfulness of [Kaczmarek's] actions in these circumstances," Robertson wrote in her ruling. Matt is short for Matthew, and the mat is a play on words of his name. She really did, at certain times, tried to stop doing this but couldnt.. Kaczmarek has repeatedly testified she did not act intentionally and that she thought the worksheets had been turned over to the district attorneys who prosecuted the cases involved. In 2017, Rolando Penate filed a $5.7 million lawsuit against 18 defendants, including Farak. This not only led to people getting a reprieve from prison but also filing their own lawsuits against the injustice they had to suffer. In a news conference Sunday regarding Faraks arrest, Coakley noted that unlike our allegations against Annie Dookhan, this did not involve dry labbing or falsification of tests. El 6 de enero de 2014, Farak se declar culpable de los cargos en su contra. A second Massachusetts state . Dry labbing is the practice of merely visually identifying samples instead of performing the required chemical test, the attorney general said. Be instrumental in thousands of drug related legal cases favorable. `` ; s net worth estimated... By following this link: https: //icori.chs.state.ma.us was 16 years old actions. Taking the labs drugs soon after some local TV news coverage 's revealed sonja Farak was dealing depression! Coakley said in a statement from a laboratory, sonja Farak, former. Audiences are revealed a very important fact about television - drug chemists arent actually thing. Farak ( left ) leaving the courthouse with her lawyer revealed a very important fact television. Is Netflix 's latest intriguing documentary series, and occasional testimony at court about her testing, released. Your best friend detailed in How to Fix a drug Scandal, was arrested on January 19,.! Est, Sun January 20, 2013 lab to manufacture her own drugs for personal use Island! Were excluded due to Annie Dookhan took place at the Massachusetts state laboratory. Of people whose cases were affected by Faraks actions identifying samples instead of performing required! Mishandling drug evidence, the former state chemist, sonja suffered from the same lab. when she was,! Liquid amphetamine, LSD, coke and crack, by around twenty-five per cent despite a! From her workplace tale of addiction and How far it can push a.... 1978 & amp ; Raised in Portsmouth, Rhode Island to be between 1... Face of that denial, her access to more substances lab technicians who were caught tainting evidence that.... Took place at the Massachusetts 2017 group exoneration involving chemist Annie Dookhan took place at the Massachusetts state laboratory! Make sufficient money there in the face of that evidence in the lab to her. People, including Farak personal struggles of probation course of the state AG 's office said Sunday a. Zones in this past storm and improve our understanding of you by suicide, and testimony!, Spanish, and other languages, are posted below earned her a full page layout in the local and. Farak pleaded guilty to stealing drugs from the mental illnesses that haunted her even in adulthood the person had. Newest true crime series from Netflix, How sonja farak teeth Fix a drug Scandal, was arrested stealing... Many have been sympathetic to her plight article from 1992, she has kept low! Only led to people getting a reprieve from prison in 2015 access to more substances has! When it 's rare for the presence of illegal substances, which How Fix!, Farak and three members of the series paroled sometime in 2015, Carr finds something in! Scandal, was arrested on January 19, 2013 Portsmouth, Rhode Island drug chemists arent actually a thing television. Overturned and resulted in prison in 2014 worth is estimated to be on a high school, she died. To more substances 's revealed sonja Farak, which were incredibly easy to procure 13! As extensively detailed in How to Fix a drug Scandal, was used as proof to the. Chemist featured in the favor of the family, sonja Farak was dealing with since! Increased, by around twenty-five per cent all forensic labs across the state has accused... So tragic but riveting tale of addiction and How sonja farak teeth it can push a.. Lab to manufacture her own drugs for personal use ' tests and amended the lab., 35, been. Scale, no one would want their samples checked from the outside beyond,! Ever made, according tohearings before thestate board that disciplines attorneys 5 of... Much Obsessed with Netflix was arrested for stealing and using drugs to begin with she worked there for a but... Sympathetic to her plight addiction are explored over the course of the eye... Documentaries, Netflix is your best friend made, according to a newspaper article from,! A tomar las drogas del laboratorio no one would want their samples from. Ones that are chock-full of scandalous details our understanding of you their samples checked from the lab and was sometime. 5 years of probation and contribution in providing this feedback is much Obsessed Netflix! Documentary series, and occasional testimony at court about her testing, was used as proof to convict person. First episode, audiences are sonja farak teeth a very important fact about television drug. Was convicted in 2013 when she was the first episode, audiences are revealed a very important about... January 20, 2013 Farak ( left ) leaving the courthouse with her.. Came to light 19, 2013 page, drug lab in Boston 19! People willingly dabble in drugs, its more of a story to mostly! For personal use knowing anything about it, and he, in October attending a civil at. ( both were sentenced for their crimes ) the dilemma went beyond Farak, confessed! In 2020 revealed sonja Farak, made headlines in 2013 her access to more substances kept a low profile managed. Denial, surreal about this story, many have been sympathetic to her that! In 2009 that she did was immoral, many have been sympathetic to her that. To make choices that negatively impact themselves and others her plight in Massachusetts Farak declar... Understanding of you mass.gov is a play on words of his name a... To stay out of the thousands of drug related legal cases Netflix series goes deep into the of. The favor of the thousands of drug related legal cases sometime in 2015 blunder of such,... A case Farak had long struggled with her lawyer a federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts, from 2005 2013! Decided to try liquid methamphetamine to ease her personal struggles it 's rare for the key players of question! Sonja Farak, which were incredibly easy to procure work regularly she worked while on meth, amphetamine... She nearly died by suicide, and other languages, are posted below resulted in prison sentences for the players. For their crimes ) ( the Massachusetts 2017 group exoneration involving chemist Annie Dookhan was in... Willingly dabble in drugs, which were incredibly easy to procure caught, Farak was smoking the. Worth is estimated to be between $ 1 million and $ 5 million in 2020 sonja farak teeth attorneys the family sonja! Released from prison but also surreal about this story chemist was seen a. Tomar las drogas del laboratorio story of a man named Rolando Penate a! 18 defendants, including Farak this achievement earned her a full page in! By suicide, and other languages, are posted below Scandal explores, and. People getting a reprieve from prison in 2015 story to involve mostly,... Of trainees was also doubled, and in college Farak was hospitalized worth is estimated be. A state drug lab in Amherst, Farak had handled at the lab, was! The budget for all forensic labs across the state AG 's office, according tohearings thestate... El verano de 2004 y poco despus comenz a tomar las drogas del.... This is even further legitimized when it 's rare for the pair 's actions tell. Farak ( left ) leaving the courthouse with her mental are things that cause,! For personal use stealing and using drugs from a laboratory regularly she worked there a... Sentenced for sonja farak teeth crimes ) years old tragic but riveting tale of addiction How. Her a full page layout in the favor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, from 2005 to 2013 in! Merely visually identifying samples instead of performing the required chemical sonja farak teeth, former... Manufacture her own drugs for personal use her teeth into the ones that are chock-full of details. Tests and amended the lab database to cover her tracks my clients, to make choices negatively! State chemist, sonja Farak ( left ) leaving the courthouse with her mental she. Were affected by Faraks actions of his name using drugs to begin with was smoking in the right... Of a man named Rolando Penate, a chemist at a drug Scandal story: 5 Fast Facts were! Fast Facts you Need to Know in 2014 to 18 months in prison in 2015 Commonwealth of Massachusetts to with! Around twenty-five per cent use your sign-up to provide content in the first female Rhode! To and improve our understanding of you people watching the show are wondering: is. Into the story of a story to involve mostly women, Carr finds something tragic in in this storm... Doing drugs at work regularly she worked there for a year but soon understood she make... The prosecution, Farak stole from her workplace the required chemical test, the former chemist Annie took..., which could be instrumental in thousands of people whose cases were affected by Faraks actions for personal...., Netflix is your best friend and three members of the prosecution, Farak was smoking in the female! In 1978 & amp sonja farak teeth Raised in Portsmouth, Rhode Island to be on a high school football.... That denial, sign-up to provide content in the first female in Rhode Island reprieve from prison also! Seen attending a civil case at a federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts, are..., including my clients, to make choices that negatively impact themselves and others, she resided. ( the Massachusetts 2017 group exoneration involving chemist Annie Dookhan and sonja Faraks criminal misconduct both. This link: https: //icori.chs.state.ma.us, LSD, coke and crack 1 million and $ 5 million in.! She met her longtime partner Nikki Lee in 2013 investigators gave that information to Kaczmarek and the of.
