Several political activists may be in hot seat
Special grand jury to investigate vote fraud in Lake County
NWI Times
Aug 15, 2003
nwitimes.com/news/local/several-political-activists-may-be-in-hot-seat/article_b4ce8e24-32b3-5d6a-aa89-ddeec6fb9675.html
CROWN POINT -- A special Lake County grand jury set to begin work next week will not lack either for witnesses or targets of their investigation into absentee voting fraud.
Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter said Thursday he expects the probe to concentrate on three major issues: those who cast illegal votes, those who solicited illegal votes and those who attempted to cover up the fraud following the May 6 primary elections.
Two recount suits that played out in court involving the East Chicago mayoral and Schererville judicial Democratic races already have provided his staff with more than 200 names, excluding the candidates.
Special Lake Superior Court Judge Steven King ruled Wednesday that East Chicago Mayor Robert Pastrick defeated challengers George Pabey and Lonnie Randolph in the spring primary, but also compiled dozens of instances where the activities of Pastrick supporters invalidated nearly 8 percent of all absentee ballots cast in that race.
Superior Court Judge Mary Beth Bonaventura has promised to issue findings by Sept. 5 on whether Schererville Town Judge Deborah Riga's 11-vote victory in the primary will stand. Challenger Kenneth Anderson's legal team alleges it has uncovered violations that should invalidate at least 22 absentee ballots.
Carter said Thursday the grand jury will not only bring overzealous campaign workers under scrutiny, but also voters who knowingly flouted election law.
A number of voters testified in the recount suits they voted absentee for convenience or as a favor to a campaign worker and then falsely marked on their application they would be out of the county or working during the 12 hours when votes can be cast at the polls.
"They could certainly be both witnesses and targets," Carter said, adding that his office is likely to show leniency to those voters who assist in the search for those who systematically violated the law.
Challengers in the East Chicago recount complained they didn't have the time to ferret out all the irregularities and sometimes met with resistance from potential witnesses.
However, Carter said the grand jury has the power to compel testimony, with grants of immunity if necessary, and has a six-month term that can be extended, to measure the breadth and depth of the problems related to mail-in absentee ballots.
Carter said his staff is reading with interest King's 104-page ruling, which names several Pastrick campaign officials and supporters who witnesses say played prominent roles in directing the absentee balloting push, recruiting absentee voters and handling their ballots.
Among them were:
Andrew Callas directed Pastrick's campaign, including the collection and photocopying of more than 1,000 absentee ballot applications at Pastrick campaign headquarters before they were sent on the election board. Callas denied he was monitoring whether potential voters did indeed vote. The photocopies were shredded the day after the election.
Lavones Tolbert, a Democratic precinct committeeman, held weekly meetings with campaign workers, reportedly urging them to procure absentee ballot votes. King said Marque Shelton, who wasn't qualified to vote absentee because he was in Lake County on election day, nevertheless did so and delivered his ballot to Tolbert's campaign headquarters, instead of mailing or personally taking his ballot to an election official.
Lake County Councilman Joel G. Markovich, a precinct committeeman and Pastrick supporter, admitted hiring 40 people to work at the polls. King said this is a common practice that amounts to vote buying since campaign workers are expected to vote for the candidate who hired them. He said the Pastrick campaign provided the money to pay them. Markovich, who owns JGM Enterprises, an East Chicago construction company, reportedly recruited about 25 of his employees to vote absentee.
East Chicago Precinct Committeeman Ramon Guillen recruited, collected and delivered absentee ballot applications in bunches of 14, 43, 19, and the forms reportedly displayed identical handwriting even though applications are supposed to be filled out by the voters themselves. King said Guillen recruited two women as absentee voters one of whom he later admitted was mentally handicapped and another "looked kind of crazy." Guillen appears to have completed the women's ballot applications.
Larry Battle, an East Chicago parks employee, claimed on his absentee ballot to be living in East Chicago, but in fact lived in Gary. He denied he paid any money to recruit absentee ballots, but the judge said Battle's testimony was contradicted by others. Ethel Marie Pace said she was encouraged by Battle to vote absentee and once she marked her ballot she gave it to Battle instead of mailing or personally delivering it to election officials.
Alan "Twig" Simmons, a city employee, was present, according to King, when Lisa Bailey and her mother, Stella Bailey, filled out their ballots. She said Simmons promised to help the two women get jobs and that he would fix Bailey's car. None of the promises were fulfilled. D.B Davis and Tony Davis, who didn't live at the address listed on their applications, later gave their ballots to Simmons, too, as did other absentee voters. King also said Simmons contacted three witnesses in the East Chicago recount suit and attempted to influence their testimony -- telling one of them to feign a lack of knowledge on the witness stand when she was called to testify.
Alfred "Bit-a-man" Rodgers, a Pastrick supporter and unsuccessful candidate for City Council, allegedly promised Glen Pitts $30 to sign an absentee ballot and application, but Pitts never received the money. Greta Eaton said Rodgers was present when she marked her absentee ballot. She said he campaigned throughout East Chicago's housing projects.
Milan Kesic, who manages a temporary employment service and a Pastrick operative, testified at the recount he obtained 90 absentee ballot applications from his employees and could have had more. He denied he paid anyone or promised jobs to anyone to vote absentee or possessed anyone's ballots.
While there are no findings yet in the Schererville recount, testimony during two days of public hearings revolved around irregular ballots that came from the heavily Serbian 10th Precinct, where Bob "Bosko" Grkinich is the Democratic committeeman.
Witnesses, many of whom were elderly and could barely understand English, told the court through an interpreter that Grkinich brought them absentee ballot applications to sign, then hovered in the same room as the voter marked the ballot.
State law forbids the unauthorized possession of completed ballots, the unauthorized possession of unmarked ballots, campaign workers' presence while voters marked and completed absentee ballots and the direct solicitation of a vote for cash. The acts are punishable as Class D felonies that carry a maximum penalty of three years in prison.
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