Watchdog groups accuse Cochise County officials of delays in providing records related to the county's administration of the controversial 2022 election, from attempts to hand-tally all ballots to taxpayer costs of hiring outside attorneys. is suing.
American Oversight filed a lawsuit Wednesday in Cochise County Superior Court asking that its numerous demands be met “immediately.”
The Washington, D.C.-based organization is familiar with Arizona. He sued the Arizona State Senate over a recount of votes cast in the 2020 election. After a long legal battle, the group received a $153,000 settlement from the Senate, plus $43,000 in attorney fees.
In its lawsuit against Cochise County, American Oversight is seeking “reasonable attorney's fees” and other relief the court may grant.
Heather Sawyer, executive director of American Oversight, said in a statement that the recent indictments of Cochise coaches Tom Crosby and Peggy Judd make addressing the records even more urgent.
“As the 2024 election approaches, the people of Cochise County, especially the residents of Cochise County, need to know how officials collaborating with the election denial movement are using their authority to make significant changes to election administration and threaten our nation's democracy. “We need to know if we've undermined the process,” Sawyer said.
Three county supervisors are named in the lawsuit: Crosby, Judd and Ann English. Mr. English voted against efforts to approve the head count and delay election certification. The lawsuit also names County Recorder David Stevens and names the county as a government entity.
County officials could not be reached for comment.
The records could help uncover the county's machinations in the tumultuous days before and after the Nov. 8 election, the complaint says. The report cites five public records requests sent to the county starting days before the November 2022 election and extending through April 2023.
In addition to providing documents related to the hand-count attempt and refusal to certify the 2022 results, the records request also seeks information about the county's review of costly ballot security measures and its interactions with conspiracy theorists. There is. It did not name those individuals, but noted that Stevens may have had contact with state legislators and 26 “other outside individuals and entities.”
In at least one case, the county responded to the records request by directing American Oversight to a website where official documents were posted, but in most cases the county did not “work diligently” to fulfill the request. “I'm here,” he replied.
One of those requests dates back more than a year. The most recent one was submitted three months ago.
The county's actions prompted a series of lawsuits. The attempted hand count was ruled illegal by the Cochise County Superior Court and upheld on appeal.
After trying to delay certification of the election results by not examining them, Crosby was ordered by a court to do so, but Crosby did not show up to comply with the order.
Here's where to contact the reporter: maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com Or call 602-228-7566 and follow her on Threads and X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) @maryjpitzl.
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