A Nevada judge has thrown out the state’s case against six Republicans indicted as “fake electors” for submitting certificates claiming that President Donald J. Trump won the 2020 election.
On Friday, Clark County District Judge Mary Kay Holthus ruled that the case brought by Nevada’s black Democrat Attorney General Aaron Ford should have been filed in another county, a reprieve for the accused, albeit one that may be temporary.
“We disagree with the judge’s decision and will be appealing immediately,” said a spokesperson for Ford’s office which angrily reacted to the ruling, vowing a legal fight at the Nevada Supreme Court.
(Video: YouTube/
At least four of the accused live outside of Clark County which, according to Holthus, is an inappropriate jurisdiction.
“I can’t see jurisdiction here,” she said. “I would have filed it up north. I don’t see any way how I have any jurisdiction over this case based on the facts presented to the grand jury.”
The case is one of several that have been brought by Democrats involving “fake electors” for the former president, including Arizona, Michigan, and Georgia, all of which are currently in progress.
“What exactly occurred here to give us jurisdiction?” Holthus said during the hearing, “I mean, let’s face it, the majority of this happened elsewhere, the way I read it.”
In rejecting the case, Holthus has badly damaged any hopes of Ford for a pre-election trial with the state Supreme Court either deciding the case or sending it to an appeals court with briefing likely dragging on for months.
Among those who were charged was GOP state chairman Michael McDonald whose attorney, Richard A. Wright, reacted to the ruling by saying that the case was “obviously brought in the wrong location.”
George Kelesis, an attorney who represents RNC member Jim DeGraffenreid who is another one of the defendants, said that Holthus “ruled correctly with the law and the facts.”
“You look at what happened, there’s no nexus to Clark County, no matter how you try to twist it or say it, it clearly was all in Carson City,” Kelesis said, according to The New York Times. He added that his client would plead not guilty no matter where the charges are brought.
“The Nevada Republican Party is pleased to see that today Judge Mary Kay Holthus dismissed the criminal case brought against the six contingent Republican presidential electors in Clark County, Nevada. The NV GOP believes Judge Holthus reached the correct decision, and is thankful all criminal charges have been dismissed,” the Nevada GOP said in a statement.
Our statement regarding the recent dismissal of the provisional Nevada electors case.
See our full statement here: https://t.co/ikrlId80jI pic.twitter.com/oW4sMAjBkl
— Nevada GOP (@NVGOP) June 21, 2024
“The Nevada Attorney General’s Office has affirmed it is appealing today’s decision, and will seek to reverse Judge Holthus’ ruling at the Nevada Supreme Court,” the statement read, including a link for anyone who would be interested in donating to the defense of the accused.
“We cannot allow attacks on democracy to go unchallenged,” Ford said in a statement after the December 2023 grand jury indictments. “Today’s indictments are the product of a long and thorough investigation, and as we pursue this prosecution, I am confident that our judicial system will see justice done.”
Polls show that Trump is currently leading President Joe Biden in the important battleground state.
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Author: Chris Donaldson
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