Ozark, Alabama — In a case that highlights one of the most alarming breakdowns of justice in family court history, Brandy Murrah, the owner of a drug testing lab in Alabama, was sentenced to 15 years in prison in November 2020 after faking drug test results that cost multiple parents custody of their children.
Update (October 19, 2026): Local court reporting fills in details the original story left out. Murrah pleaded guilty in September 2020 to one felony count of perjury and 16 misdemeanor counts of forgery, according to Oxygen. Dale County Circuit Judge William Filmore imposed the 15-year sentence and refused probation or work release, WTVY reported. In December 2020 he denied her request to reconsider the sentence (WTVY). In 2021 a Pike County mother pursued a civil lawsuit against the Alabama Department of Human Resources, Murrah and others; in April 2021 a judge denied her request to force DHR to hand over agency documents (WTVY). FAN could not find any public report on how that lawsuit ended, and we found no newer developments in the case.
How one lab owner’s fraud tore families apart
This devastating story, first reported nationally by the New York Post, sheds light on a deeper problem: how much unchecked power is given to third-party contractors and CPS systems, and how easily that power can be abused.
According to the New York Post, Brandy Murrah, owner of A&J Lab Collections, was convicted after admitting to falsifying drug test results that were used by Alabama’s Department of Human Resources (DHR) in child welfare cases. Local reporting says the lab worked for the Dale County DHR office and also handled paternity tests. Prosecutors said she collected samples, never sent them for testing and submitted false results.
The cases they buried, read out loud.
New20 to 30 Removals, Not One Warrant: The Monterey County Case
A Monterey County supervisor testified her workers removed children 20 to 30 times and never once got a warrant. Adam tells the story of twins taken from their mother without a judge's order, the…
Ozark police began investigating in May 2019 after a family brought them evidence, and Murrah was charged with forgery that month, WSB-TV reported. Dale County District Attorney Kirke Adams said at the time that the damage could not yet be measured.
We have no idea at this time how many people did not get their children back.
Kirke Adams, Dale County District Attorney, to WSB-TV (May 2019)
Parents judged on tests that were never run
Parents were reported as failing drug tests they never actually failed. Some were accused of drug abuse, stripped of custody, and had their children placed into foster care, sometimes permanently. Others spent months or even years trying to prove their innocence, only to discover that the test results they were being judged on were fabricated.
These fake test results weren’t just clerical errors. They were used as evidence in court, often becoming the determining factor in custody cases. Some parents lost visitation rights, others had termination of parental rights (TPR) filed against them, and several children were placed with strangers or into institutional care.
Murrah’s 15-year sentence cannot undo the trauma families experienced because of her fraudulent actions. A DHR worker testified that the agency could not verify how many false tests had been submitted, according to WTVY. FAN’s research on false positive drug tests shows this is not the only way bad lab results break up families.
No one checked the lab
Even more troubling is that the system failed to verify the lab’s integrity. There was no meaningful oversight, no cross-checking, and no accountability until it was too late. Families, not the agency, uncovered the fraud.
The lab owner has been convicted. But what about the county offices that relied on unverified test results? What about the judges who made decisions without demanding proper evidence? What about the families still suffering the fallout today?
What this case shows
At the Father’s Advocacy Network, we’ve seen firsthand how easily the child welfare system can remove children from loving homes based on incomplete, biased, or outright false evidence. The story of A&J Lab Collections is not an isolated incident. It is a clear symptom of a systemic failure that continues to:
- Punish parents without due process
- Use third-party contractors without accountability
- Ignore basic standards of fairness and verification
- Separate children from their biological families on weak or manipulated grounds
If a single lab owner can alter the fate of dozens of families, what other systems are being trusted without verification? This case shows that due process in a CPS investigation is not guaranteed, that courts can make irreversible decisions based on false data, and that families are too often presumed guilty instead of innocent. Reform should include:
- Independent audits of all third-party CPS contractors
- Stricter legal standards for accepting drug tests in custody cases
- A legal right for parents to access and verify all evidence used against them
- Transparent appeals processes and case reviews when fraud is uncovered
Parents facing a case built on lab results can read FAN’s guide to parents’ rights in a CPS case. FAN is not a law firm, and this article is information, not legal advice.
Key facts
- Defendant: Brandy Murrah, owner of A&J Lab Collections, Ozark, Alabama
- Agency: Alabama Department of Human Resources (Dale County DHR), which relied on the lab for drug screens and paternity tests
- May 2019: Ozark Police Department opened its investigation; Murrah charged with forgery
- September 2020: pleaded guilty to one felony count of perjury and 16 misdemeanor counts of forgery
- November 2020: sentenced to 15 years in prison by Dale County Circuit Judge William Filmore; probation and work release refused
- December 2020: Judge Filmore denied her request to reconsider the sentence
- Prosecutor: Dale County District Attorney Kirke Adams
- Number of falsified tests: unknown; a DHR worker testified the agency could not verify it
- April 2021: a Pike County judge denied a parent’s motion to compel DHR documents in a civil suit against DHR and Murrah; outcome not publicly reported
Sources
- New York Post — Lab owner jailed for faking drug tests that cost parents child custody (2020-11-20)
- WSB-TV — Alabama lab owner accused of forging paternity, drug test results in custody cases (2019-05-23)
- WTVY — Woman who cost parents custody of their children headed to prison (2020-11-12)
- Oxygen — Alabama woman falsified drug screening results that cost families custody of kids (2020-11-19)
- WTVY (via Rockford News First) — Judge sends woman whose lies cost parents their children back behind bars (2020-12-17)
- WTVY — Judge: DHR does not have to provide documents in drug testing lawsuit (2021-04-06)
Don't just read it. Act on it.
Lawmakers fund and oversee this system. Tell Alabama lawmakers what happened here.
Get an email when this case has a new development: charges, court dates, verdicts, settlements. Only about this case; unsubscribe anytime.
Lived through something like this? Your case could be the next one we document.
$1M BONDUp nextAlabama DHR Worker Who Was Also a Foster Parent Held on $1M Bond in Child Sex Abuse CaseProsecutors say the man who drove kids to court and supervised visits for Alabama DHR was also a licensed foster parent. Now he faces four counts of sexually…
Oct 18, 2026
FALSE DRUG TESTFollowing the Money, Part 2 of 4: The TestOct 29, 2026
FALSE DRUG TESTFollowing the Money, a four-part series on South Carolina’s child-welfare spending.Oct 27, 2026
FAMILY DENIEDJones County, Mississippi Youth Court Under Fire After Judge Denies Kinship Placement Despite State RecommendationsMay 25, 2026
