Today, more than two months after a far-reaching scandal rocked San Francisco's police and prosecutors, District Attorney Kamala Harris announced she has created a "trial integrity unit."

In March, successive revelations shook law enforcement. First, reports alleged that Deborah Madden, a former technician in the crime lab, had been stealing and using cocaine brought in by police as evidence. Next came news that some police who testified at trials had criminal backgrounds, information that should have been, but wasn't, provided to criminal defense attorneys.

Both situations put in jeopardy convictions and prosecutions by the DA's office. To date, SF Police Chief George Gascon has closed the crime lab and dismissed hundreds of cases. Harris's office has likewise had to dismiss hundreds of prosecutions.

Meanwhile, as Harris was announcing her integrity initiative, the first of what could be an avalanche of legal challenges to past convictions began. Convicted murder Dennis Cyrus is challenging his conviction on federal drug and conspiracy charges because of the crime lab fiasco. Attorney's for the former SF gang member met with lawyers from the U.S. Attorney's office--on Wednesday, too. The crime lab technician who testified at Cyrus' trial was none other than Madden.

Harris is running for state attorney general, and the stream of bad headlines is certainly bad press for her candidacy. The new unit is one of several reforms she's launched to address the entrenched problems. But whether they will be enough to restore credibility to crime fighters and avoid damage to her campaign remains to be seen.

With reports from The Bay City News