Red Earth Charged[SD Voter Fraud]

WWW.KSFY.COM ^ | December 13, 2002 | By: Robert Wilson

[luv2ndamend]

The woman at the center of a voter registration investigation in South Dakota says her work to recruit new voters "became a game." That's just part of what is revealed in court documents filed Friday morning regarding Becky Red Earth. The papers are included in the charges filed against Red Earth in Minnehaha County.

The Democratic Party also knew as early as August 15th there might be a problem with applications Red Earth was turning in.

In October Red Earth told KSFY she'd been the target of a politically motivate witch hunt, "I'm not guilty. I didn't do anything criminal." Now, after months of investigation, the state charged Red Earth with 19 counts of forgery in connection with her work to register voters for last month's election.

Attorney General Mark Barnett said his office has spent hundreds of hours preparing these charges, "We had to do hundreds of interviews, trying to sort out what did she do, when did she do it, she was active in 26 counties."

Part of that effort was a six-hour interview with Red Earth in Sioux Falls October 30th.Court papers filed with the charges say Red Earth was responsible for more than 17 hundred applications for absentee ballots. Those papers say more than 300 signatures were forged.

Red Earth admits copying some of the signatures from previous requests, because she couldn't find the people in order to submit new applications.

Even though she was charged Friday, we don't know when Red Earth will turn herself in. The Minnehaha County Sheriff's office said Friday afternoon they'll give her several days.

But Red Earth isn't the only person being investigated. DCI agents have also been looking into voting activity in Todd County. A second investigation began after Republican lawyers turned in 50 sworn statements of voting irregularities on election day.

Included are claims that someone promised people ten-dollars to vote, and drove them to the polls in a van with Tim Johnson signs in the window.

Barnett says he considered these the 'smoking guns.' He says investigators have interviewed two of the three people named in these documents and, "These affidavits are perjury or forgery, they are just flat false." And the Attorney General says he's "highly suspicious" of the third. His investigators are still trying to find the third person named in the affidavit.

He also wants to go back and take another, closer look at the other 47 affidavits turned in by Republican lawyers.

By: Robert Wilson

[KriegerGeist]

Will any of this ultimately result in John Thune's winning the seat that he lost to fraud?
Or, is this just a clean up for a re-run in 2004?

[Diogenesis]

"Oh Darling. There will always be Casablanca the stolen FBI files."

---

>

[newgeezer]

Hey, I wonder if Tommy Dasshole realizes the small states -- such as his own SD -- are best for influencing the balance of power in the Senate, with the highest return on investment. I mean, c'mon... It'd take 20 Becky Red Earths in Texas to accomplish what this one did in SD.

[luv2ndamend]

...charges say Red Earth was responsible for more than 17 hundred applications for absentee ballots. Those papers say more than 300 signatures were forged.

She sure was busy!

[Rocky]

But Red Earth isn't the only person being investigated. DCI agents have also been looking into voting activity in Todd County. A second investigation began after Republican lawyers turned in 50 sworn statements of voting irregularities on election day.

Included are claims that someone promised people ten-dollars to vote, and drove them to the polls in a van with Tim Johnson signs in the window.

Barnett says he considered these the 'smoking guns.' He says investigators have interviewed two of the three people named in these documents and, "These affidavits are perjury or forgery, they are just flat false." And the Attorney General says he's "highly suspicious" of the third. His investigators are still trying to find the third person named in the affidavit.

He also wants to go back and take another, closer look at the other 47 affidavits turned in by Republican lawyers.

This is a very confusing passage. Is the Attorney General saying that they think there were voting irregularities, or does he think that the affidavits presented by the Republicans are false?

[holyscroller]

Fry her! They should make every single one of the absentee requests that she filed re-register. It's obvious her intent was fraud from the get-go. She needs to be made an example of so this isn't repeated when Daschole runs in two years. This was a foretaste of what's to come when the big rat runs.

[Fish out of Water]

http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/bump-list

[luv2ndamend]

I think the rat AG does not think that the republican affidavids are correct.

[Lael]

Why can't the Senate decide if the 300++ forged signatures tipped the election??

To allow Democrats to profit by this is an OUTRAGE!!!

[blackdog]

Sounds like the Attorney General is a Democrat who will obfuscate the whole thing. It is important for rats to have an investigation at the state level so they can control it.

[blackdog]

Lott, Lott, Lott, Lott, Racist, Blah, Blah, Lott, Lott, Clan, Clan, Segregationist, Lott, Lott, Lott, Step Down, Step Down, Lott, Lott......infinatum......

Now, got any more questions for the media?

[eeriegeno]

The SD election results should be considered 'null and void' because of this vote fraud. Re-election should be held in January.

[danelectro]

Sounds like the Attorney General is a Democrat who will obfuscate the whole thing. It is important for rats to have an investigation at the state level so they can control it.

barnett is a republican.

[luv2ndamend]

12/13/2002
Voter Fraud Investigation

Attorney General Mark Barnett is calling two post-election allegations of voter fraud in Todd County bogus, and a third charge "highly suspicious." Republican lawyers working for the John Thune Senate Campaign collected three affidavits claiming a Tim Johnson supporter paid people to vote last month.

The state investigated those charges and discovered someone made up the story. Republican lawyers collected a total of 50 affidavits of election day misdeeds. But the three that caught Attorney General Mark Barnett's attention were those alleging someone tried to pay for votes.

All three of the affidavits are worded identically, but were signed with different names. All three names have a common connection.

His name is Ed Charging Elk, and what's surprising is, amid the Republican fingerpointing, he's a registered Democrat.

Even after the election was over, the bitterness of the John Thune, Tim Johnson race for Senate continued. In his concession speech, Thune alluded to wrong doing at polling places. Shortly after, lawyers for his campaign collected affidavits to prove the point. These were three they collected. Other than the names, all three were identical, claiming a person driving a van with Tim Johnson signs in the window drove people to the polling place and then offered to pay them 10 dollars for voting.

But today, South Dakota Attorney General Mark Barnett discredited two as false, and the third as suspect.

Jolynn Sleeping Bear told state investigators she didn't get a ride, and wasn't offered money. In fact, the Todd County auditor confirmed Sleeping Bear didn't even vote. When asked why she signed a false affidavit, she said her friend Ed Charging Elk told her to do it.

Charging Elk's son, Quentin, lives in the same apartment building as Sleeping Bear. His name was also on one of the affidavits.

Barnett says, "When he was interviewed, he told the DCI agent, 'that is not my affidavit, I did not sign my affidavit, that is not my signature.'"

And guess what, Quentin Charging Elk didn't vote either.

"Those affidavits are either purgery, forgery or call 'em what you want they are just that false," says Barnett.

The third affidavit is signed by Naomi Hawkman. Investigators haven't found her yet, but they know she did vote. They also know she used to go by the name Charging Elk.

"There's a Charging Elk connection for all three affidavits and I don't know what that means we're going to try to find Ed and ask him."

Barnett says he has no reason to believe either the Notary Public who signed the affidavits or the lawyers who collected them had any idea they were false. Barnett hopes to learn more once they talk to Ed Charging Elk.
John Bachman
© 2002 KELO-TV. All Rights Reserved.

[blackdog]

My bad then. I am from Wisconsin where when one politician of one party is brought up on charges, an equal or greater charge will be inflicted from that party onto a high profile member of the other party.

It is like nuclear deterence here. The attorney general and lame duck governor have been whacking the pawns like maniacs. Both of them are guilty as hell.

[Rocky]

Thanks for the clarification.

[nicmarlo]

Update on South Dakota voter fraud:

Red Earth was responsible for more than 17 hundred applications for absentee ballots. Those papers say more than 300 signatures were forged.

Red Earth admits copying some of the signatures from previous requests, because she couldn't find the people in order to submit new applications.

[luv2ndamend]

Here is another one for you in La.

http://www.wbrz.com/stories/121302/new_votebuy.shtml

[nicmarlo]

lol; thanks! I found that before I saw your post while searching and posted it at 7:59 p.m. to the FReepers Against Voter Fraud thread....thanks so much though. If you have more (and time), you can post links there too as they are being compiled for future use/historical archives:

FReepers Against Voter Fraud

[Ben Hecks]

Ed Charging Elk may have submitted three false affidavits on purpose knowing that they would discredit the investigation. For years, we have heard the "arms for hostages" phrase.....in Johnson's case, a good phrase might be "coats for votes". Just before the election, Johnson distributed thousands of free coats to kids on reservations which looked like vote-buying to me. In Missouri, I think we were able to reduce (but not totally eliminate) election fraud after the fiasco of 2000; maybe SD can do the same before 2004.

[goody2shooz]

Yeah, I agree with you. The election in South Dakota stinks.

We've had to face the fact here in Washington state that, once again, the Democrats in King County (Seattle) stole an election. Corruption within Democratic ranks is appalling. And they control the State Government which means nothing will be done about this.