Nevada judge dismisses case against six Trump fake electors accused of trying to overturn 2020 election
A Nevada judge has dismissed the yearslong criminal case against six Republicans accused of submitting false documents claiming Donald Trump won Nevada’s 2020 presidential election, delivering another setback to efforts to prosecute fake electors involved in the effort to keep Trump in office after his defeat to Joe Biden.
Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford’s office charged the six Republicans with forgery and offering a false instrument for filing or record. All six pleaded not guilty, and prosecutors plan to appeal the dismissal.
The defendants included Michael McDonald, chairman of the Nevada Republican Party, and Jesse Law, the former chairman of the Clark County Republican Party. McDonald’s attorney, Richard Wright, called the planned appeal “hasty” and “premature” and accused prosecutors of pursuing the case for political reasons.
After Biden won Nevada by more than 30,000 votes, the six Republican electors gathered outside the state Legislature and signed a certificate declaring Trump the winner and awarding him the state’s six electoral votes. The signing ceremony was recorded and later used as evidence in the case.
A central issue was whether the defendants intended to deceive government officials by submitting the certificate. Prosecutors argued the documents were meant to be treated as legitimate electoral votes that then-Vice President Mike Pence could count during the Jan. 6, 2021, certification of the election.
The defendants maintained that the certificate was political theater intended to highlight their objections to the election results and preserve their ability to challenge Biden’s victory. Their attorneys argued that they never intended government officials to accept the document as an authentic electoral certificate.
Judge Mary Kay Holthus sided with the defense, finding insufficient evidence that the six defendants intended to deceive government officials. She also concluded that prosecutors failed to provide the grand jury with evidence that could have supported the defendants' position.
Holthus noted that the Republicans had publicly announced their actions and their stated purpose rather than secretly submitting the documents or attempting to induce officials to rely on them. She said those circumstances weighed against finding fraudulent intent.
The case had also faced disputes over jurisdiction before ultimately being heard in Clark County, which includes Las Vegas. It had initially been scheduled for trial in Carson City before prosecutors voluntarily dismissed the case and pursued it in Southern Nevada.
The Nevada ruling follows the dismissal of similar fake elector cases in Michigan and Georgia. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes also recently dismissed a criminal case against fake electors while indicating that she intends to present the matter to a new grand jury.
A federal case against Trump over efforts to overturn the 2020 election was dropped in late 2024 after he defeated Vice President Kamala Harris and returned to the White House. A separate fake elector case remains active in Wisconsin.
Comments
Post a Comment