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Judge Rules Boston Prosecutor Unintentionally Withheld Evidence

A judge who has been sharply critical of federal prosecutors in Boston has decided not to punish Assistant U.S. Attorney Suzanne Sullivan for withholding evidence from a defendant.

Federal prosecutor Sullivan failed to turn over exculpatory evidence to a Mattapan man arrested on a gun charge in July 2007.

But Judge Mark Wolf found Friday that the misconduct was unintentional — not deliberate — and that Sullivan isn't likely to make the same mistake in the future.

Wolf did cite Sullivan's error as evidence of a "dismal history" by the U.S. attorney's office in Boston when it comes to turning over evidence to defendants.

Another assistant U.S. attorney, Jeffrey Auerhahn, faces possible disbarment in a separate legal proceeding involving exculpatory evidence. That matter is still proceeding.

This program aired on February 19, 2010. The audio for this program is not available.

Headshot of David Boeri

David Boeri Senior Reporter
Now retired, David Boeri was a senior reporter at WBUR.

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