Jury finds couple who voted twice not guilty of election fraud Intentions considered in rendering

Repugs are very unhappy per the comments. They wanted to hang this on a "voter fraud" to justify their new voter law in WI.


http://www.jsonline.com/news/crime/122632359.html

Jury finds couple who voted twice not guilty of election fraud
Intentions considered in rendering verdict


By Bruce Vielmetti of the Journal Sentinel

May 25, 2011 |(57) Comments

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"You have a personal responsibility when you have a job as a poll worker," said Nicole Matenaer of West Allis.

Election officials testified that a poll worker should have noted the word "absentee" printed in gray left of the Gunkas' names in the poll book Nov. 2, 2008, and asked them if they had sent in their absentee ballots. If they had answered yes, the worker was not supposed to give them ballots.

Matenaer also wondered why Maas did not put the poll workers on as witnesses, a question raised by the defense.

She said jurors were also disturbed by the fact the state Department of Justice agents who showed up at the Gunkas' house in September 2009 intentionally misled him about the purpose of their visit, and secretly recorded Herbert Gunka, yet expected him and his wife to be completely forthcoming with them..........................

the absentee ballots are checked to see if anyone came in and voted-- if they did the absentee ballot isn't counted.

This is really the only way to do it, since absentee ballots can come in up to at least a week after election day and the Board of Elections does the same check when the the late ones come in.

In Britain, if you apply for an absentee vote, then you can't vote in person - whether or not you actually use your absentee vote. And that's fine - if you decide you can't trust the mail after all, then you hand in the 'absentee ballot'.

And absentee ballots have to arrive by the day of the election. Which, again, makes more sense then saying "we have to wait for a week for people to post in the vote they had plenty of time to get round to".