Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announces six voter fraud indictments two weeks before Election Day • Ohio Capital Journal

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost on Tuesday announced six indictments of voter fraud, stemming from recommendations made by Secretary of State Frank LaRose earlier this year. Even as Yost insisted on the importance of investigations and prosecutions, he tried to weigh the scope of the problem.

Voting is a “sacred right,” Yost said. The six charges represent less than 1% of the referrals made by LaRose's office. The AG added that he does not expect a prison sentence in any of the cases and expressed slight frustrations about the quality of the referrals.

Yost's role and authority

Yost's office received more than 600 tips from the Secretary of State about suspected election fraud, which were investigated by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Of those referrals, only 138 contained allegations of illegal voting – the rest related to issues such as improper registrations.

The attorney general emphasized that illegal voting is a “strict liability” crime.

“Think about a speeding ticket,” Yost said. “You get pulled over for going 52 miles per hour. They thought it was a 50 mile per hour zone. The policeman tells you there are 35. It makes no difference that you had no intention of speeding, that you did not know you were speeding, or that you were reckless or negligent when you did so – you are simply liable and ignorance of the law is no excuse. “

But his office can't pursue the charges until the local district attorney has “adequate time” to look into the matter himself. In total, Yost successfully brought six charges against lawful permanent residents.

• Ramesh Patel faces charges of illegal voting in Cuyahoga County
• Lorinda Miller is charged with two counts of illegal voting in Summit County
• Nicholas Fontaine faces charges of illegal voting in Portage County
• Ahmed Aden, Van Thuy Cooper and Maria Dearaujo all face charges of illegal voting in Franklin County.

Each of the defendants is said to have taken part in two or more elections between 2008 and 2020. They are charged with fourth-degree felonies, which carry a maximum penalty of 18 months in prison and five years of probation upon release. But given the facts of the cases, Yost said it was unlikely that any of them would face time behind bars.

“If you don't have a criminal record or are part of a criminal enterprise, I don't think this is a good use of expensive state prison beds,” Yost said. “Still, it’s important. The right to vote is sacred. It is part of our exercise of sovereignty as a self-governing people.”

“If you’re not a citizen, you have no say, period, and there should be consequences if you do otherwise,” he added.

The allegations in context

Focusing on the 138 tips of alleged illegal voting that his office had received, Yost argued: “There are not enough of these cases, even if every single one were justified, (…) that is simply not enough for there to be any of these Elections would have changed.” .”

The AG also expressed some disappointment that the Secretary referred so many cases where the only offense had to do with registration.

“I need to have a conversation with the secretary of state about the value of the cases where there was no vote — I think we should focus on the vote,” Yost said.

“I think that I don't really want to take people away from critical incident investigations, officer-involved investigations, child rapists, murderers, to prosecute voter registration cases for past elections,” he added.

And while Yost explained that his office is still processing cases and waiting to see whether district attorneys plan to file charges, he repeatedly stressed that the number of actual charges is extremely small.

“I think this should allow everyone to take a deep breath and have more confidence that our elections are actually safe and secure and non-citizens will not vote,” Yost emphasized. “And if so – if that were to happen – the few who slip through the cracks will be held accountable.”

Why now?

On the other hand, Yost's timing is complicated, with the election just two weeks away and a presidential campaign routinely amplifying baseless claims of voter fraud. Will his allegations appease skeptics or encourage more conspiracy theories? Yost, for his part, argued that his office was simply conducting an investigation out of duty.

“I received these referrals in August, and here we are in mid-October and we have charges,” Yost said. “I will refer you to the Secretary of State regarding the timing, but we have acted with appropriate speed.”

David Becker of the Center for Election Innovation and Research was quick to insist that anyone who breaks the law should be held fully accountable — up to and including deportation. “That’s why we see this so rarely,” he said, “the penalties far outweigh the rewards.”

But while he argued that prosecutors should pursue the charges “carefully,” they should also do so “in close proximity to the crime.” Becker previously served as a senior trial attorney in the U.S. Justice Department's voting division and explained that the agency has strict rules that prohibit bringing cases involving possible interference in the voting process close to an election.

“Why wouldn’t they wait until after the election to hold a press conference and announce an indictment?” he wondered aloud.

“The federal Justice Department would never do something like that,” he said, “and I can't think of a good reason for a state law enforcement agency to bring charges for illegal voting that may have taken place 10 years ago, two weeks ago.” a major presidential election.”

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