The legal battle over getting a referendum question on the ballot in November to create a county executive was back in court today. Sam Hodge, who initiated the lawsuit on behalf of Columbia County Forward, shared this report of what happened:
Another day in court--another round of stunning, deeply troubling revelations.
Today, our legal team once again stood up for the nearly 4,000 Columbia County voters who signed the petition to create a full-time, elected County Executive. And what we uncovered in the courtroom was nothing short of jaw-dropping.
The two Republican objectors who had previously skipped court finally showed up. Under oath, they confirmed what we suspected: this was a coordinated, partisan operation engineered from within our Republican-led government.
Jim Miller, a sitting Republican elected official, testified that he went to the Board of Supervisors, and when he arrived, he was handed a pre-prepared General Objection form by the Clerk of the Board, the very official who was supposed to impartially review those objections, and was told he'd be one of three people submitting nearly identical filings.
Under oath, Miller admitted he didn't draft the legal memorandum submitted in his name, didn't prepare the Specific Objections, and didn't even know who did. He also appeared in court with a lawyer, but he had no idea who was paying for that representation.
Let's call this what it is: Collusion.
Then came the third objector, a Republican political operative with ties to John Faso. Her testimony was even more damning.
The objector stated under oath that she walked into Chairman Matt Murell's governmental office--and, in the presence of the Clerk of the Board, was handed the stack of specific objections. All she had to do was sign them.
She didn't write a word of it. But those documents--bearing her name--were used to try to silence voters and kill this grassroots initiative.
Let's be clear: engaging in political activity from a government office is illegal.
This is bigger than a few bad decisions. It's a betrayal of public trust. It's an insult to the voters of Columbia County, and it cannot be ignored. . . .
Our top priority remains getting this referendum on the ballot. Republicans have tried everything to disenfranchise us. Now we know they were willing to lie, cheat, and break the rules to do it.
I shouldn't be shocked--but I am. The depth of this conspiracy is worse than we imagined. Elected officials are supposed to follow the law, not trample it.
None of this would have been uncovered had it not been for the lawsuit. To support the Columbia County Forward legal defense fund, click here.
Good work Sam, and thank you for the write up.
ReplyDeleteRe: "Let's be clear: engaging in political activity from a government office is illegal."
It would carry more weight if similar action were taken regarding the City of Hudson and the Democratic Party. That would make the stance feel consistent rather than partisan.
All fraud and corruption should be stopped, regardless if blue or red.
The issue doesn't seem to me to be that the objectors didn't draft their own objections provided they sincerely believed in them (in which case they're patent idiots but that's another podcast). Lawyers routinely draft legal filings for their clients.
ReplyDeleteAnd that's the problem: none of the objectors appear to have retained counsel to draft their objections. Nor do they seem to have retained counsel to represent them in court -- or even know who was paying their bills.
So who did pay those lawyers' bills? And the court costs associated with filing and responding to moving papers? It's not too far out on the limb to guess that I did. And you did, too. In fact, we all did -- we all paid taxes to the County and the knuckleheads in charge used our money in a ham-handed attempt to shut down the citizens.
And the lawyers who agreed to participate in this charade? As an attorney, and a citizen, I have serious questions about their ethical analysis of the situation. And even if they're all ok with such a blatant misuse of public funds for partisan gain, they shouldn't be ok with submitting papers to the court arguing hackneyed reasons for rejecting valid voter signatures, reasons previously rejected by the courts.
100%
DeleteThey have really gone too far to pull back now, and I’m worried this is going to wind up in appeals court on our dime. Where does this end? Apparently we can not re-petition again until 2027.
Great piece on the hearing by Patrick Greco of the Pine Plains Herald in yesterday’s paper. Thank god for local journalism!
https://www.newpineplainsherald.org/in-columbia-county-executive-referendum-dispute-objectors-say-legal-filings-came-from-gop-officials/
It's worth noting that the good ol' boys are fighting this issue on a technical basis, rather than on the merits. They are clearly conceding that they will lose if the matter appears on the ballot. ~ PJ
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