• Qui Tam
  • SEC
  • CFTC
  • FCPA
  • Whistleblower Resources
  • FAQS
Subscribe
Donate
No Result
View All Result
Whistleblower Network News
The Truth at Any Cost.
Qui Tam, Compliance and Anti-Corruption News.
SIGN THE PETITION FOR NATIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER DAY IN 2023
Whistleblower Network News
  • Qui Tam
  • SEC
  • CFTC
  • FCPA
  • Whistleblower Resources
  • FAQS
Subscribe
Donate
No Result
View All Result
Whistleblower Network News
No Result
View All Result
Home Government Intelligence Community

Another Hidden Victim Freed In FBI Lab Scandal

David ColapintobyDavid Colapinto
December 28, 2009
in Intelligence Community, News, Opinion
Reading Time: 3 mins read
Share on TwitterShare on FacebookShare on LinkedInEmail

A D.C. Superior Court judge recently released Donald E. Gates, who spent 28 years in prison for a murder and rape he did not commit. The court also expunged Mr. Gates’ conviction after it was determined that the government’s expert, FBI crime lab examiner Michael P. Malone, lied about the hair and fibers evidence that Malone claimed linked Gates to the rape and murder.

Mr. Gates’ case was covered by the Washington Post, and the Post has run 2 editorials (12/18/2009 and 12/27/2009) calling for further investigation as to how the government could hold a man wrongfully convicted after it was reported that Malone’s findings in other cases were questioned as a result of the DOJ’s review of the FBI Lab scandal in the 1990’s.

Support Whistleblower Network News

Not reported in the Washington Post or other media coverage of the Gates case, is the role of Dr. Frederic Whitehurst in uncovering the misconduct of Malone. In the mid-1990s, Dr. Whitehurst blew the whistle on Malone for lying under oath to help remove Judge Alcee Hastings from the federal bench. In 1997, the U.S. Department of Justice Inspector General confirmed Dr. Whitehurst’s allegations that Malone lied under oath and the IG raised questions about the work of a dozen other FBI lab examiners who Whitehurst also reported to the IG for misconduct.

However, the Justice Department failed to take prompt or effective corrective action in the aftermath of the Whitehurst investigation on the FBI Lab scandal. In fact, under records released to the National Whistleblowers Center, the Forensic Justice Project and Dr. Whitehurst under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), it is evident that the DOJ Criminal Division reviewed the Whitehurst allegations to minimize disclosure of allegations misconduct to the courts and criminal defendants. Instead, the DOJ relied on the state, local and federal prosecutors as well as the FBI Lab to make key decisions about whether misconduct occurred in thousands of criminal prosecutions where the FBI Lab’s evidence and testimony was questioned. In most cases, the defendants who were convicted and the courts where misconduct by the FBI may have occurred were never notified.

In 2002, the Justice Department closed its review of 6,000 cases impacted by Whitehurst’s allegations without issuing a final report, without notifying the defendants whose cases were reviewed and without reporting on the work that DOJ had conducted in secret.

In Mr. Gates’ case the DOJ apparently was aware as early as the year 2000 that Gates’ case was impacted by Whitehurst’s allegations about Malone, but according to the Washington Post the government never notified Mr. Gates or his attorney or the court that there was any problem with the evidence used to convict Mr. Gates.

However, this problem is not limited to cases in Washington, D.C. Malone and the other FBI lab examiners who were subject of the IG review in the 1990’s testified in nearly 6,000 cases nationwide.

A nationwide effort must be undertaken to disclose all of the cases to the public and the defendants and to permit the criminal justice system, not prosecutors or the FBI, to decide whether there are any more wrongfully convicted (or even wrongfully executed) individuals who have been victimized by the FBI Lab scandal.

Other stories have appeared in the Jacksonville Observer, Associated Press, National Public Radio, and Cleveland’s WJW. Stay tuned for future updates on this issue.

Tags: Dr. Frederic WhitehurstForensic JusticeFreedom of Information Act (FOIA)National SecurityWhistleblower News
Previous Post

EEOC announces proposed federal sector rules and invites comments

Next Post

Remembering Dennis Brutus (1924-2009)

David Colapinto

David Colapinto

Next Post

Remembering Dennis Brutus (1924-2009)

Please login to join discussion

Receive Daily Alerts

Subscribe to receive daily breaking news and legislative developments sent to your inbox.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Most Popular

Change the Culture, Make National Whistleblower Day Permanent

Tell President Biden to “Finish the Job” for Whistleblowers

Whistleblower Advocates See Parallels to Enron in Silicon Valley Bank Collapse

Whistleblower Jóhannes Stefánsson Plans to Testify at Fishrot Trial in Namibia

WNN Exclusive Interview with Social Security Whistleblowers Sarah Carver and Jennifer Griffith — Part 1

Whistleblower Raised Concerns of Rodents, Spiders in Kitchen of Childcare Facility, Then Fired; OSHA Rules They Were Retaliated Against

Whistleblower Poll

Whistleblower Poll
Whistleblower Poll

Exclusive Marist Poll: Overwhelming Public Support Among Likely Voters For Increased Whistleblower Protections

byGeoff Schweller
October 6, 2020

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

STAY INFORMED.
Subscribe to receive breaking whistleblower updates.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

About Us

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
  • Careers

Subscribe

  • Daily Mail
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • YouTube Channel

Contribute

  • Letter to the Editor
  • Submission Guidelines
  • Reprint Guidelines

Your Experience

  • Accessibility Statement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Help

  • The Whistleblowers Handbook
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Advertise
Whistleblower Network News

Whistleblower Network News is an independent online newspaper providing our readers with up-to-date information on whistleblowing. Our goal is to be the best source of information on important qui tam, anti-corruption, compliance, and whistleblower law developments. 

Submit an Article

Copyright © 2021, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

This Newspaper/Web Site is made available by the publisher for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice. By using this website, you understand that there is no attorney-client relationship between you and the Newspaper/Web Site publisher. The Newspaper/Web Site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.

SIGN THE PETITION FOR NATIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER DAY IN 2023
No Result
View All Result
  • Exclusives
  • Government
    • False Claims-Qui Tam
    • Federal Employees
    • Intelligence
  • Corporate
    • CFTC & Commodities
    • Dodd-Frank
    • IRS & Tax
    • SEC & Securities
  • Features
  • Legislation
  • International
    • Foreign Corruption
  • Rewards
  • Whistleblower of the Week
  • Environment & Climate
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Employment
    • Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblowers
    • Retaliation
    • OSHA
  • Media
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • National Whistleblower Day
  • Whistleblower Poll
  • Whistleblower Resources
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Resources for Locating An Attorney
    • The New Whistleblowers Handbook
  • National Whistleblower Day ’23

Copyright © 2020, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

Become a Whistleblower Network News Subscriber

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Subscribe to WNN

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Subscribe to WNN

Add New Playlist

Go to mobile version