Lions of Liberty are suspending Operation Drop Box surveillance operations in Yavapai County.

Thursday’s move comes days after the organization was named in a lawsuit seeking a federal court order limiting its activities.

But Lions of Liberty board member Luke Cilano told Capitol Media Services that the real driving force behind the decision was that the lawsuit brought his group together with the controversial Clean Elections USA. He said he did it with its founder, Melody Jennings.

Cyrano said the Liberty Lions reportedly linked the organization to activities that could be seen as intimidating voters, including tracking voters and posting pictures of voters and license plates online. said Cyrano.

Luke Cilano, Lions of Liberty Board Member

“They say they do certain things, and we do some of those certain things,” he said.

Jennings’ statement that the purpose of placing armed monitors in tactical gear near the drop-boxes is to ward off “mules” she claims are trying to stuff multiple ballots into the drop-boxes. There was also. she shouldn’t say

There he said the Lions of Liberty felt the need to put some distance between his group and Clean Election USA.

“We have integrity,” he said.

“We are very firm in the rule of law,” said Sirano. “And we haven’t violated any of that.”

Cilano said his group expects to be sued after receiving a demand letter earlier this month from the Protect Democracy Project alleging that its activities violate state and federal law.

This came after the Lions of Liberty and the Yavapai County Readiness Team announced Operation Drop Box.

The operation’s website called for “patriots” to oversee 19 drop-boxes in the county on two-hour shifts. We also asked volunteers to bring their cell phones or cameras to take pictures of people casting more ballots than they have.

But Cyrano said he never intended to intimidate voters.

He said the wardens are on public property and anything they see or photograph is turned over to the county sheriff. It said the volunteers would not be armed with overtly assault weapons, as was the case in some reports.

“We are not vigilantes,” Cyrano said Thursday.

Another “suspension order” sent to members of the Lions of Liberty and the Yavapai County Preparedness Team emphasized the need to separate from groups “whose appetite for law and order is far weaker than ours.” bottom.

It’s less clear what will happen with the lawsuit filed earlier this week by the League of Women Voters against the Liberty Lions and the Yavapai County Preparatory Team, as Cyrano’s organization no longer plans to monitor Dropbox. , said the other group was never involved in the project because it is a tax-exempt charitable organization that cannot participate in political activities.

That leaves Jennings and Clean Election USA as the only defendants in the lawsuit.

But they are already facing a voter intimidation civil lawsuit in another civil lawsuit alleging that the voter intimidation took place before U.S. District Judge Michael Liburdi. And the judge said he will try to make a ruling by Friday on whether to ban their activities near Dropbox.