Harris Co AG -- who was summarily destroyed in her primary recently -- is pursuing charges against former counter employee over 2022 election.
Posted by
Qale (aka Qale)
Aug 13 '24, 14:08
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Kim Ogg announced she'd be filing for these charges during a campaign stop where she was with Senator Ted Cruz whom the Democrat had recently endorsed.
Story follows:
State investigators have concluded an investigation into Harris County's highly-scrutinized November 2022 election, finding no evidence that there was an attempt to sway the results, District Attorney Kim Ogg announced Tuesday.
However, a former county employee is now facing charges of theft and tampering with government documents. The election official is accused of working two full-time jobs simultaneously, which Ogg said had a negative impact on election operations. Ogg said Darryl Blackburn oversaw supplies for the election and failed to properly allocate ballot paper to polling locations.
Blackburn's attorney, Charles Flood, called the charges an "abuse of power."
"This case isn’t about the election - it’s about timesheets," Flood said in a statement. "The Texas Rangers made clear that the evidence shows no intent or attempt to influence the 2022 election, so it seems Ms. Ogg’s only motivation is to try and claim my client as some sort of consolation prize. My client is not guilty, and we look forward to defending his innocence."
The investigation launched in the wake of the 2022 election after Gov. Greg Abbott called for state official to look into "widespread problems" in Harris County.
"The allegations of election improprieties in our state's largest county may result from anything ranging from malfeasance to blatant criminal conduct," Abbott said in a statement at the time. "Voters in Harris County deserve to know what happened. Integrity in the election process is essential. To achieve that standard, a thorough investigation is warranted."
The investigation did not produce evidence of intent to impact the outcome of the election for either party, Ogg said.
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