Overlooking voter fraud

Posted 8/21/12

Over the past few years, Republicans all over the country have been passing laws or attempting to pass laws meant to prevent something that almost never occurs: in-person voter fraud. Well, it …

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Overlooking voter fraud

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Over the past few years, Republicans all over the country have been passing laws or attempting to pass laws meant to prevent something that almost never occurs: in-person voter fraud. Well, it happens that here in Sullivan County we have dozens of probable cases of voter fraud, and no one seems to have the power or will to make the fraudsters pay for their crimes.

In 2014, the Sullivan County Board of Elections determined that more than 90 Hasidic voters, including developer Shalom Lamm, were not eligible to vote here, and the matter went to Judge Stephan Schick. He issued subpoenas for all of the voters to come an explain why they were in fact eligible to vote—and every single one, including Lamm, decided they would rather pay the fine than show up to defend their right to vote. Schick determined that the voters were ineligible to vote, and called it “an attempt to stuff the ballot box.” That court decision still stands.

In March 2015, there was an election to determine whether the Village of Bloomingburg would continue to exist; if it did, people moving into Lamm’s development, the Villages at Chestnut Ridge, could easily overwhelm village government. In this vote, also, the BOE determined that some 27 voters were not eligible to vote, but the county attorney’s office made a deal with Lamm’s attorney to let their votes count anyway, which swung the election in favor of Lamm and his allies. Later, in order to dismiss one lawsuit, the county attorney’s office agreed to let those voters remain on the voter rolls, even though the BOE had previously determined they had no right to vote. Did anyone in the county attorney’s office ask the 400 residents of Bloomingburg if this was a just and fair way to proceed?

Not surprisingly, the BOE commissioners Anne Prusinsky and the late Rodney Gaebel were sued by the 27 members of the Hasidic community, alleging they had been discriminated against because of their religion. Then, as if to add insult to injury, Prusinksy was told the county would no longer defend her against the discrimination suit.

The number of petitioners in the case has dropped from about 27 to 10 because, reportedly, some of the people involved in the lawsuit did not want to offer proof of their residency. Given these circumstances, for county officials to pull the rug out from under Prusinski, presumably with the advice of Sullivan County Attorney Sam Yasgur, is outrageous.

Fortunately, the new legislature has decided not to let Prusinski twist in the wind. They voted on January 21 to hire two lawyers from Middletown to represent her in the case. It will be interesting to see if the remaining 10 petitioners will hold onto their claim of residency. It’s clear that at least 80 have so far, in two cases, decided the right to vote is not worth showing up to court to defend.

We would never advocate that anyone of any religion or race be discriminated against, but anyone who has followed this case knows that there have been ample allegations of fraud involved in the construction of the Villages at Chestnut Ridge, as well as allegations of crony capitalism and voter fraud, and that seems to still be unfolding. Attorneys for the Town of Mamakating and Village of Bloomingberg on January 14 filed an appeal of a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) lawsuit against Lamm and various officials and others in the development of the 396-unit townhouse complex in Bloomingburg that is at the heart of all this turmoil.

The original case, brought by lawyers David Holland and Phillip Simpson, alleged that there were numerous instances of conspiracy, fraud, voter fraud, bribery and other crimes over the years.

The case was dismissed in September 2015 by federal judge Katherine Forrest, who said, among many other things, that the lawsuit had not been filed in time.

In the appeal, Holland and Simpson argued that, for various reasons, the lawsuit was filed in time, and they addressed the other points raised by Forrest.

In the appeal, they also pointed once again to voter fraud. The appeal said, “in 2014 and 2015 when Defendants Lamm, [his partner Kenneth] Nakdimen, and Bloomingburg Rentals LLC, along with hundreds of others (many of whom are identified in the Amended Complaint) orchestrated and participated in campaigns of fraudulent voter registration in efforts to obtain control of the Village government and then to prevent the Village from dissolving and ceding jurisdiction to the larger, more robust Town where they could not muster such a voter majority. The voter fraud was executed so as to protect the development after the initial frauds had been exposed.”

It’s clear that there are many allegations of crimes involved in the construction of the Villages at Chestnut Ridge, including multiple allegations of voter fraud going back at least two years, and so far no one had been held to account.

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