At the risk of painting with a very wide brush, DAs aren't incentivized to make sure people get due process. They are incentivized to convict as many people as possible. In multiple cases here in Texas where later DNA evidence overturned rape and murder charges, the DA argued right up until the moment of reversal that they believed totally in the guilt of the accused. They have to, it's their job and to have public doubt in the people they are trying will only result in them looking for a new job pretty quickly.
Collaboration? AFAICT we have lots of reason to suspect that it happened at the _instigation_ of the prosecutors!
By all means, throw the book at the dishonest chemist, but I want to see heads on pikes (or at least a legal equivalent) for the justice-perverting rat finks that set her up to it.
I'd want to see their emails before taking such a generous point of view. All the emails between this lab tech, police, and DAs should be released, and a special prosecutor brought in to review them.
Not saying it's right, just how it is.