❓WHAT HAPPENED: A Michigan judge dismissed charges against 15 people accused of signing a document saying President Donald J. Trump won the state in the 2020 election, citing a lack of evidence to prove criminal intent.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel (D), District Court Judge Kristen Simmons, and 15 defendants including Kathy Berden and Meshawn Maddock.
📍WHEN & WHERE: The ruling was issued on Tuesday in a Michigan court.
💬KEY QUOTE: “This is a fraud case, and [you] have to prove intent. And I don’t believe that there’s evidence sufficient to prove intent.” – Judge Kristen Simmons
🎯IMPACT: The decision ends the prosecution’s case against the 15 accused.
Fifteen people accused of signing a document asserting President Donald J. Trump defeated former President Joe Biden in Michigan during the 2020 election will not face trial, following a state judge’s ruling that prosecutors failed to demonstrate criminal intent. The decision came Tuesday from Michigan District Court Judge Kristen Simmons, who stated, “This is a fraud case, and [you] have to prove intent. And I don’t believe that there’s evidence sufficient to prove intent.”
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel (D) had charged the group with eight felony counts, including forgery, alleging that they knowingly submitted a signed document claiming Trump had won. Among the defendants were Republican National Committee (RNC) member Kathy Berden and former Michigan Republican Party Chairwoman Meshawn Maddock. Nessel expressed her dissatisfaction with the ruling, saying, “The evidence was clear. They lied. They knew they lied, and they tried to steal the votes of millions of Michiganders.”
The charges stemmed from a 2020 meeting at the Michigan Republican Party headquarters, where the defendants signed the document before it was submitted to the National Archives and the United States Senate ahead of the presidential election certification. Prosecutors argued that the group intended to deceive officials by making the document appear to be an official state government form. However, Judge Simmons concluded that the evidence did not support that claim. She noted that the document lacked the governor’s signature or a fraudulent seal, indicating it was not presented as an official document.
Judge Simmons emphasized that the defendants appeared to genuinely believe they were fulfilling their constitutional duties amid concerns about alleged election irregularities. “Right, wrong, or indifferent, it was these individuals and many other individuals in the state of Michigan who sincerely believe, for some reason, that there were some serious irregularities with the election,” she said.
The ruling effectively ends the case against the 15 accused.
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