Gascon blasted Public Defender Jeff Adachi's assertion
Wednesday that the hundreds or perhaps thousands of cases
that Madden worked on should be dismissed as "grossly
overstated." Madden is accused of taking small amounts of cocaine she
tested in October 2009; Gascon stated that does not invalidate the investigation or
prosecution of the cases.
Still, he accepted blame on the police department's behalf for not disclosing to the district attorney or defense attorneys about Madden's former misdemeanor domestic abuse conviction.
"We made a mistake. We failed to disclose that," Gascon said. While acknowledging her integrity as an expert witness would have been attacked in court had the crime of moral turpitude been known, "It's up to the court to determine whether that
conviction would affect her credibility to the point that she could not do her
job. "
Evidence
will continue to be tested at the regional crime labs while the
narcotic unit is audited by the American Society of Crime Lab Directors
and the California Association of Crime Lab Directors in the upcoming
weeks. Gascon said he will also enlist the support of California
Attorney General Jerry Brown for help in "re-testing of evidence, and
the improvement of internal administrative controls."
