Owner Of Lab Defends Technician Accused Of Helping Fake Trustee's Paternity Test
SACRAMENTO COUNTY (CBS13) — The lab tech arrested for faking the paternity test of an elected official is back at work, and his boss is blasting the Sacramento County DA saying investigators don't understand the science of her business.
Twin Rivers School District Trustee Cortez Quinn took a leave of absence on Thursday following pressure from the school board.
The Sacramento District Attorney arrested Quinn and lab technician Andre Pearson, accusing the pair of submitting a phony DNA cheek swab in a paternity suit filed by a school district employee.
That employee has enlisted the help of DNA expert Bob Blaiser, who has represented high-profile clients such as OJ Simpson and the Unabomber.
An investigator found a different DNA sample from Quinn on a paper towel he discarded in a bathroom wastebasket.
The affidavit against Pearson and Quinn states that Pearson's boss, Sue Ramsden, had been suspicious of him.
But on Friday, she told CBS13 a different story, disputing the facts of the affadavit.
"They are investigators with no scientific background," she said. "They do not understand how to read a DNA test.
Ramsden points to newly published research that shows some people have more than one DNA type, a possible explanation for Quinn's two different samples.
Family law attorney John Myers says Pearson's arrest shouldn't condemn the lab.
"Of course there can be a bad apple. We've seen this before with DNA testing in different kinds of labs across the country, and it can raise all kinds of problems," he said. "But right now what we have is an accusation. We don't have proof.
Quinn and Pearson are scheduled to face a judge for the first time on Wednesday.
