Opinion ID: 159646
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Work Orders Admitted at Trial

Text: 21 Prior to trial, it was discovered that some numbers recorded in the production quantity sections of the forms had been visibly altered, and that these and other numbers may have been falsely inflated. Nearly eighty of such work orders were admitted at trial. There were various problems with these work orders. On at least thirteen work orders, the number of prints ordered or the number of prints delivered were visibly altered. Additionally, some products were delivered to the customer without QAE review, which means the work order and resulting products were never sent to the QAE for her to determine if the work order tracking number was included on the QAE's random surveillance list. Other work orders displayed mathematical inconsistencies. For example, on one work order the customer requested six prints of three negatives, for a total of eighteen prints, but the work order showed that eighty-four prints had been delivered to the customer. 22 There was additional evidence which placed the production quantities recorded on the work orders in doubt. Shaw testified that three work orders which she had originally inspected had been visibly altered with inflated numbers. Former AAA photographer Larry Smith also identified three of his work orders which had been subsequently altered by someone else. Additionally, Sharon Bass, a former AAA employee, testified that at one point during the contract Brakhage directed AAA employees to make the numbers higher, and that the employees complied with that directive. According to Bass, Brakhage's stated reason for this directive was that he wanted to include test prints in the count, even though these test prints were not requested by or delivered to the customer. Both Smith and Bass testified that on another occasion, Brakhage directed employees to leave portions of the work order forms blank and said that he would complete the quantity produced and quantity delivered to the customer sections himself.