Judge considering whether to dismiss voter fraud case
A judge is considering whether to dismiss a voter fraud case against an Orange County man, one of 20 statewide brought by Gov. Ron DeSantis' office overseeing election crimes.
Peter Washington, 59, is charged with illegally casting a ballot in the 2020 election despite being cleared to vote by officials in Tallahassee. The Office of Statewide Prosecution, which can only charge defendants accused of crimes committed in two or more judicial circuits, is pursuing the case, but attorney Roger Weeden said in court Tuesday they have no authority to do so.
Prosecutor Robert Finkbeiner argued the alleged crime happened in Orange and Leon counties, but Weeden countered that Washington has no ties to Leon other than having submitted a voter application later accepted by the Florida Secretary of State in Tallahassee.
“It would be an absurd scenario, if their position is correct, that they can prosecute him in Leon County for casting a vote in Orange County,” Weeden said.
Circuit Judge Jenifer Harris didn't rule on Weeden's motion to dismiss the case, giving him and Finkbeiner until Friday to provide supplements to their arguments before deciding.
Washington, who was convicted in 1996 for attempted sexual battery, said he didn't know he wasn't allowed to vote, as he received his voter card from the Orange County Supervisor of Elections. He and his wife voted early in October 2020 and said he wasn't stopped from casting a ballot.
According to an affidavit, Washington told investigators a probation officer assured him his rights would automatically be restored once he was released from prison and he was surprised when he was arrested for voter fraud.
A 2018 amendment to the Florida constitution restored voting rights to formerly incarcerated people convicted of certain felonies, but that
wouldn’t have applied to Washington.
“It’s not like I went out and had an intent to violate the law,” Washington told reporters after the hearing. “If the state would have done their part and let us know that it was illegal, this would’ve never been going on.”
Washington is one of three Orange County residents facing voter fraud charges of the 20 announced by DeSantis in August. Michelle Stribling, who is also represented by Weeden, is scheduled to be in court Wednesday while Jerry Foster has a hearing next week.
In all three cases, the accused said they had their applications approved and believed they were legally allowed to vote.
Washington hopes his case will be dismissed on similar grounds as Robert Wood, whose case was tossed after a judge in Miami ruled the Office of Statewide Prosecution has no authority to charge him.
But Finkbeiner said in court that a judge in Tampa ruled against a similar motion, though a written order has not yet been filed. It’s not clear which case he was referring to but it could be part of supplemental arguments filed in Orange by Friday.
“It’s a game, it ain’t fair,” Washington said. “The state is playing with people’s lives.”