Michigan judge rules that voter data breach charges can go forward
A judge in the US state of Michigan is allowing charges to be brought against a former town clerk and a lawyer who gained national attention by spreading unproven theories about election fraud. On Tuesday he rejected a motion to dismiss allegations that they improperly processed voter data.
The ruling by Hillsdale County District Judge Megan Stiverson means that a preliminary examination of attorney Stefanie Lambert and former Adams Township Clerk Stephanie Scott, who is now running for Hillsdale County Clerk, will take place as previously scheduled on Thursday.
“This court has considered the allegations of every legal duty an employee has in this state,” Stiverson wrote. “None of those representations rebuts the probable cause document alleging that Ms. Scott acted outside that framework and/or violated any law in this state.”
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced in May that her office was charging Lambert with three felonies and Scott with five felony counts after Lambert, under Scott’s direction, allegedly transmitted data from Adams Township’s electronic voter registry, which contains personal information about eligible voters.
Lambert passed the data on to Ben Cotton, a cybersecurity expert, to conduct an “investigation,” Nessel’s office said.
Dan Hartman, the attorney representing Lambert and Scott, has argued in previous court hearings that Scott was acting within the scope of her official duties as a caseworker and Lambert was acting as Scott’s attorney.
But Stiverson said in her ruling on Tuesday that the court had not yet had an opportunity to learn the facts of the case through legal evidence.
In the preliminary investigations, the judge must ultimately decide whether the public prosecutor has presented sufficient evidence to suggest a reasonable suspicion that criminal offenses have been committed so that the case can be heard in court.
The charges include using a computer to commit a crime, a crime punishable by up to seven years in prison.
The investigations will likely shed new light on efforts to sow doubts about voting equipment in Michigan and elsewhere. Lambert and Cotton were active in several swing states. The effort began after the 2020 presidential election, in which Republican Donald Trump falsely claimed the race was stolen from him.
Lambert was involved in an unsuccessful lawsuit attempting to overturn Michigan’s results in 2020. Democrat Joe Biden won the state against Trump 51% to 48%.
According to her decision on Tuesday, Stiverson will allow Cotton to testify at the preliminary hearing.
Hartman had argued that Lambert and Scott’s relationship and collaboration with Cotton was protected by attorney-client privilege because he was part of the legal team.
“I am sure that after reviewing the arguments of the defense and the People, both would agree that the attorney-client privilege is inherently sacred in our legal system,” Stiverson wrote Tuesday. “What is not protected is criminal activity or the promotion or conspiracy to commit criminal (or even illicit) activity.”
Cotton was granted immunity from prosecution for his testimony during the preliminary hearing.
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