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【中国观察2021年12月11日讯】
一位熟悉该诉讼的消息人士提供了录像带的使用权，并指出当时不知名的举报人提供了视频证据，声称显示宾夕法尼亚州特拉华县的选举官员破坏了2020年11月大选的记录。这些视频也与投诉和大量证据一起提交，原告认为这些证据支持了他们91页的投诉中的指控。
由特拉华县居民露丝-莫顿、利亚-胡普、格雷戈里-斯滕斯特罗姆以及露丝之友运动提出的申诉，既阻止了2020年11月选举期间违反州选举法的详细指控，又声称选举后有阴谋，以掩盖上届总统选举期间发生的众多问题和违法行为。
虽然起诉书中所叙述的选举法的细枝末节可能会逃避公众的注意，但关于被告共谋破坏或改变选举数据、材料和设备，"以防止发现2020年11月3日选举的欺诈性结果，以及违反各种州和联邦选举法 "的指控，再加上视频，可能最终会唤醒沉睡的群众对选举完整性的事业。
2021年5月21日，根据宾夕法尼亚州的《知情权法》向特拉华县提交的关于2020年选举数据和信息的请求，成为所谓的阴谋和掩盖的动力，正如投诉中所讲述的那样。
在提出知情权要求一周后，有人拍到了两个人的对话，知情者称他们是特拉华县的选举运营主任詹姆斯-艾伦和吉姆-萨维奇，特拉华县的名录中称他们是首席保管员/投票机仓库主管。
在提供给《联邦主义者》的那段视频中，可以听到艾伦对萨维奇说："那就把垫子和第二台扫描仪扔掉。"
"我们不能再谈这个问题了，"萨维奇回答说，艾伦质问道，"为什么？" "这是一项重罪，"艾伦反驳道。
投诉书为这段视频增加了更多的质料，称萨维奇随后 "由于特拉华县的其他雇员和[合同雇员]雷吉娜-米勒在场，鼓励私下谈话，继续讨论移除垫子和扫描仪的问题"。
据一位知情人士透露，在接下来的一个月里，举报人拍摄了她与另一位特拉华县官员James Ziegelhoffer的对话。齐格霍弗，又称齐格，担任媒体区西部选区的 "选举法官"。
这盘录像带据称记录了齐格说："我们这里有的......是证据。...是证据。对吗？让他们弄清楚。"
举报人插话说："是的，但我不明白的是，这让--说实话这让我很紧张。是为什么磁带会被扔掉？"
齐格开始否认这一说法，"不，没有磁带，"这时举报人打断了他的话。
"不，你们一直在扔掉磁带......那么你们扔掉的是什么磁带？比如说为什么？"
"它们都是无法识别的，"他在举报人再次打断之前反驳道。
"但从11月的选举开始就是这样了，所以你为什么要扔掉任何东西。因为你必须保存22个月，"视频中听到这位不具名的消息人士说，这指的是联邦的保留任务。
"是的，有一些磁带被扔掉了，"齐格最后承认，但补充说，"但它们没有审计价值。"
第三段视频出现在同一个大房间里，拍摄了一个被知情者认定为特拉华县律师汤姆-加勒格的人。当加勒格从投票机上撕下磁带并将其丢弃时，可以听到举报人问道。"汤姆，你为什么要撕掉它？让你感觉更好吗？"
"在这一点上，"盖勒格回答说，"我不希望有人捡到它，并认为我们把东西扔掉了。"
"我们会有一个小篝火，"齐格补充说。
诉状中的几项指控也与这段视频相吻合，原告称特拉华县层汤姆-加拉格尔和齐格霍夫 "摆了一张长桌，上面摆满了2020年11月3日的选举数据，并有选择地将机器/防伪磁带与其他2020年11月3日的记录一起销毁，将其撕成碎片并放入垃圾桶，说他们将有一个篝火来烧掉这些数据"。
"雷吉娜-米勒变得很紧张"，投诉继续称，米勒 "告诉这对夫妇，他们违反了许多州和联邦法律"。根据投诉，齐格霍夫为自己的行为辩护，声称2020年11月3日的选举数据 "没有审计价值"。
米勒是Monarch Staffing公司的合同雇员，他还声称，2021年7月，艾伦威胁说，将向除他之外的其他人提出的投诉视为 "第二次和最后一次违反指挥系统"。投诉还称，萨维奇 "告诉里贾纳-米勒，如果他在工作中被人背叛，他将让人杀死，并描述了他听到的关于县里有人 "出卖 "的故事。
试图与艾伦通话的努力被证明是不成功的，一位行政助理说他正在开会，但同意向他转达我的媒体请求。艾伦没有回我的电话。打给萨维奇的电话无人接听，县政府也没有理会这两位先生以及加勒格和齐格霍夫的评论要求。
在详细说明了所谓的违反选举法和所谓的破坏选举记录以及声称的阴谋之后，申诉书提出了五种法律理论，其中第一项是普通法欺诈，第二项是欺诈性失实陈述，第三项是疏忽性失实陈述，第四项是普通法诉讼请求，这显然是宾夕法尼亚州与选举有关的欺诈诉讼请求，第五项是授权令和公平救济。
虽然，如果是真的话，这些指控似乎叫嚣着违反法律，但没有一项指控似乎与起诉书中向法院提供的事实非常吻合。同样令人不安的是对原告寻求的补救措施的把握。
通常情况下，欺诈行为会获得金钱赔偿，但当选举官员计算非法或欺诈性选票而剥夺选民的权利时，你如何将其伤害货币化？同样，什么法院命令（或强制令）或其他禁令可以使原告重新获得完整的权利。
然而，该诉讼可能有另一个目的：强调原告认为普遍存在的违反州和联邦选举法的行为，并揭露涉嫌掩盖这些问题的阴谋，从而防止在未来的选举中重演。
不过，对于那些被对川普的厌恶蒙蔽了双眼，看不到对我们民主的真正威胁的人来说，这些视频可能还不够：没有诚信的选举和无法信任官方结果的选民。
玛格-克利夫兰是《联邦主义者》的高级撰稿人。克利夫兰曾担任联邦上诉法官的永久法律助理近25年，曾是圣母大学商学院的全职教师和兼职讲师。这里表达的观点是克利夫兰以私人身份表达的。
Whistleblower Videos Capture Pennsylvania Election Officials Destroying Evidence
Margot Cleveland
By Margot Cleveland
Several residents of Delaware County Pennsylvania filed a sprawling lawsuit Thursday against the former Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar, Delaware County, the Delaware County Board of Elections, and more than a dozen individual election officials. The lawsuit followed Wednesday’s night release of videotapes taken by a whistleblower capturing concerning behavior by several election officials in the Keystone state.
A source familiar with the lawsuit provided access to the tapes, noting the then-unnamed whistleblower had come forward with video evidence purporting to show Delaware County, Pennsylvania election officials destroying records from the November 2020 general election. The videos were also filed with the complaint and a bevy of exhibits the plaintiffs maintain support the allegations contained in their 91-page complaint.
The complaint, filed by Delaware County residents, Ruth Moton, Leah Hoopes, Gregory Stenstrom, as well as the Friends of Ruth Motion campaign, prevented both detailed alleged violations of state election law during the November 2020 election and claims of a conspiracy after the election to hide the numerous problems and illegalities that occurred during the last presidential election.
While the minutia of the election law recited in the complaint may escape the public’s notice, allegations that the defendants conspired to destroy or alter election data, materials, and equipment, “to prevent the discovery of the fraudulent results of the November 3, 2020 election, and the violation of various state and federal election laws,” when coupled with the videos, may finally awaken the sleeping masses to the cause of election integrity.
A May 21, 2021 request for 2020 election data and information submitted to Delaware County under Pennsylvania’s Right to Know Law served as an impetus for the alleged conspiracy and cover-up, as the complaint told the story.
A week later after the Right to Know request, a conversation is captured between two individuals, identified by those with knowledge of the lawsuit, as James Allen, the Director of Election Operations for Delaware County, and Jim Savage, identified by Delaware County’s directory as the Chief Custodian/Voting Machine Warehouse Supervisor.
In that video provided to The Federalist, Allen is heard telling Savage, “Then get rid of the pads and the second scanners.”
“We can’t talk about it anymore,” Savage replies, with Allen questioning, “Why?” “It’s a felony,” Allen countered.
The complaint added more texture to this video, alleging that Savage then “encouraged a private conversation to continue the conversation of the removal of the pads and scanners due to other Delaware County employees and [contract employee] Regina Miller,” being present.
The following month the whistleblower filmed a conversation she had with another Delaware County official, James Ziegelhoffer, according to a source with knowledge of the lawsuit. Ziegelhoffer, also known as Ziggy, held the position of “Judge of Election” for the Western Precinct in the Media Borough.
This tape purports to capture Ziggy saying, “What we have here . . . is evidence. Right? Let them figure that out.”
The whistleblower interjects, “Yes, but what I don’t understand and this makes — honestly this makes me nervous. Is why tapes were being thrown away?”
Ziggy begins to deny the claim, “No, no tapes were,” when the Whistleblower cuts him off:
“No, you guys have been throwing away tapes … so what tapes are you throwing away? Like why?”
“They’re all unidentifiable,” he counters before the whistleblower interrupts again:
“But it’s been that way since the November elections, so why would you throw anything away. Because you have to save it for 22 months,” the unnamed source is heard saying in the video, a reference to federal retention mandates.
“Yes there are tapes that are being tossed,” Ziggy finally acknowledges, but adds, “but they are of no audit value.”
A third video appears filmed in the same large room and captures a man identified by individuals with knowledge of the lawsuit as a Delaware County lawyer, Tom Gallager. As Gallager tears the tapes from the voting machines and discards them, the whistleblower can be heard asking: “Tom, why do you have to rip it up? Makes you feel better?”
“At this point,” Gallager replies, “I don’t want anybody to pick it up, and thinking we threw stuff away.”
“We’re gonna have a little campfire going,” Ziggy adds.
Several allegations in the complaint mesh with this video as well, with the plaintiffs alleging Delaware County layer, Tom Gallagher, and Ziegelhofer “set up a long table full of November 3, 2020, election data, and selectively destroyed the machines/proof tapes along with other November 3, 2020 records by tearing it into pieces and placing [it] into the trash stating they will have a campfire to burn the data.”
“Regina Miller became nervous” the complaint continues, alleging that Miller “informed the pair that they were violating numerous state and federal laws.” According to the complaint, Ziegelhoffer justified his actions by claiming “there was no audit value” to the November 3, 2020, election data.
Miller, who was a contract employee with Monarch Staffing, also claimed that in July of 2021, Allen threatened to consider a complaint taken to anyone else but him, as a “second and final violation of chain of command.” The complaint further alleged that Savage “told Regina Miller that he would have someone killed if he was ever betrayed by someone at work and described a story that he heard regarding someone from the county that someone “ratted on.”
Attempts to speak with Allen proved unsuccessful, with an administrative assistant stating he was in a meeting, but agreeing to convey my media request to him. Allen did not return my call. A call to Savage went unanswered and the County also ignored requests for comments from the gentlemen along with Gallager and Ziegelhoffer.
After detailing the purported violations of election law and the alleged destruction of election records and the claimed conspiracy, the complaint presented five legal theories for recovery, with Count I for common law fraud, Count II for fraudulent misrepresentation, Count III for negligent misrepresentation, Count IV for a claim for common law quo warranto, which apparently is a Pennsylvania claim for fraud related to elections and Count V for Mandamus and Equitable Relief.
While, if true, the allegations seem to scream of violations of the law, none of the claims alleged seem a close fit to the facts proffered to the court in the complaint. Also troubling is grasping the remedy the plaintiffs seek.
Typically money damages are awarded for fraud, but how do you monetize the harm to a voter when he is disenfranchised by election officials who counted illegal or fraudulent votes? Similarly, what court order (or mandamus) or other injunction could make the plaintiffs whole again.
The litigation, however, may have served another purpose: To highlight what the plaintiffs believe were widespread violations of state and federal election law and to expose the alleged conspiracy to cover up those problems, and thereby prevent a repeat in future elections.
Still, the videos may not be enough for those so blinded by their distaste for Trump that they cannot see the real threat to our democracy: elections without integrity and an electorate unable to trust the official outcome.
Margot Cleveland is a senior contributor to The Federalist. Cleveland served nearly 25 years as a permanent law clerk to a federal appellate judge and is a former full-time faculty member and adjunct instructor at the college of business at the University of Notre Dame. The views expressed here are those of Cleveland in her private capacity.
https://thefederalist.com/2021/11/19/whistleblower-videos-capture-pennsylvania-election-officials-destroying-evidence/