In a surprising turn of events, a Nevada judge dismissed an indictment Friday against six Republicans accused of submitting certificates to Congress falsely declaring Donald Trump the winner of the state’s 2020 presidential election. The decision potentially reduces the number of states with criminal charges pending against so-called fake electors from four to three.
Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford expressed his disagreement with the ruling, stating that he plans to take the issue to the state Supreme Court. Judge Mary Kay Holthus of the Clark County District Court ruled that Las Vegas was the wrong venue for the case, leading to the dismissal. Ford, a Democrat, stated, “The judge got it wrong, and we’ll be appealing immediately,” before declining to provide further comment.
Defense attorneys for the accused individuals, including Clark County Republican Party chairman Jesse Law and state GOP chairman Michael McDonald, asserted that the case was effectively closed. They argued that bringing the case before another grand jury in a different venue, such as Carson City, would violate the statute of limitations on filing charges, which expired in December.
The trial, which had been scheduled for January, would have included defendants such as national party committee member Jim DeGraffenreid and Storey County clerk Jim Hindle. Each individual faced charges of offering a false instrument for filing and uttering a forged instrument, both felonies with potential prison sentences of up to four or five years.
The defense attorneys contended that the case was improperly brought before a grand jury in Las Vegas rather than in Carson City, where the alleged crimes took place. They also criticized prosecutors for failing to present evidence that could have exonerated their clients.
In response, Deputy State Attorney General Matthew Rashbrook argued that the crimes affected the broader society, particularly voters who could have been disenfranchised by the false certifications. Despite last-ditch efforts by the prosecution, the judge ultimately sided with the defense’s argument that the venue for the trial should have been in northern Nevada, where the alleged crimes occurred.
Following the court hearing, calls for resignations from elected positions were made by advocacy groups, targeting individuals like Jim Hindle, the overseer of elections in Storey County. The Nevada Republican Party released a statement welcoming the court’s decision and indicated its intention to continue the legal battle through the appeals process.
The case in Nevada is part of a larger investigation into fake electors in presidential battleground states like Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Although the charges were dismissed in Nevada, criminal cases in other states involve a larger number of individuals implicated in the falsification of election results.
In a surprising twist, Kenneth Chesebro, a lawyer who had previously pleaded guilty in Georgia for his role in the fake elector scheme, cooperated with investigators in Nevada and was not charged. His testimony before the grand jury shed light on the orchestrated efforts to falsely certify Trump as the winner of the Nevada election.
Despite the dismissal of the charges, the controversy surrounding the 2020 election and the actions of fake electors continues to unfold in various states across the country. This story has been updated with additional information.
