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Back Box voting investigators catch election officials red handed-Volusia County on lockdown

by Open-Publishing - Wednesday 17 November 2004
11 comments

Elections-Elected USA

TUESDAY NOV 16 2004: Volusia County on lockdown

County election records just got put on lockdown

Dueling lawyers, election officials gnashing teeth, Votergate.tv film crew catching it all.

Here’s what happened so far:

Friday Black Box Voting investigators Andy Stephenson and Kathleen Wynne popped in to ask for some records. They were rebuffed by an elections official named Denise. Bev Harris called on the cell phone from investigations in downstate Florida, and told Volusia County Elections Supervisor Deanie Lowe that Black Box Voting would be in to pick up the Nov. 2 Freedom of Information request, or would file for a hand recount. "No, Bev, please don’t do that!" Lowe exclaimed. But this is the way it has to be, folks. Black Box Voting didn’t back down.

Monday Bev, Andy and Kathleen came in with a film crew and asked for the FOIA request. Deanie Lowe gave it over with a smile, but Harris noticed that one item, the polling place tapes, were not copies of the real ones, but instead were new printouts, done on Nov. 15, and not signed by anyone.

Harris asked to see the real ones, and they said for "privacy" reasons they can’t make copies of the signed ones. She insisted on at least viewing them (although refusing to give copies of the signatures is not legally defensible, according to Berkeley elections attorney, Lowell Finley). They said the real ones were in the County Elections warehouse. It was quittin’ time and an arrangment was made to come back this morning to review them.

Lana Hires, a Volusia County employee who gained some notoriety in an election 2000 Diebold memo, where she asked for an explanation of minus 16,022 votes for Gore, so she wouldn’t have to stand there "looking dumb" when the auditor came in, was particularly unhappy about seeing the Black Box Voting investigators in the office. She vigorously shook her head when Deanie Lowe suggested going to the warehouse.

Kathleen Wynne and Bev Harris showed up at the warehouse at 8:15 Tuesday morning, Nov. 16. There was Lana Hires looking especially gruff, yet surprised. She ordered them out. Well, they couldn’t see why because there she was, with a couple other people, handling the original poll tapes. You know, the ones with the signatures on them. Harris and Wynne stepped out and Volusia County officials promptly shut the door.

There was a trash bag on the porch outside the door. Harris looked into it and what do you know, but there were poll tapes in there. They came out and glared at Harris and Wynne, who drove away a small bit, and then videotaped the license plates of the two vehicles marked ’City Council’ member. Others came out to glare and soon all doors were slammed.

So, Harris and Wynne went and parked behind a bus to see what they would do next. They pulled out some large pylons, which blocked the door. Harris decided to go look at the garbage some more while Wynne videotaped. A man who identified himself as "Pete" came out and Harris immediately wrote a public records request for the contents of the garbage bag, which also contained ballots — real ones, but not filled out.

A brief tug of war occurred, tearing the garbage bag open. Harris and Wynne then looked through it, as Pete looked on. He was quite friendly.

Black Box Voting collected various poll tapes and other information and asked if they could copy it, for the public records request. "You won’t be going anywhere," said Pete. "The deputy is on his way."

Yes, not one but two police cars came up and then two county elections officials, and everyone stood around discussing the merits of the "black bag" public records request.

The police finally let Harris and Wynne go, about the time the Votergate.tv film crew arrived, and everyone trooped off to the elections office. There, the plot thickened.

Black Box Voting began to compare the special printouts given in the FOIA request with the signed polling tapes from election night. Lo and behold, some were missing. By this time, Black Box Voting investigator Andy Stephenson had joined the group at Volusia County. Some polling place tapes didn’t match. In fact, in one location, precinct 215, an African-American precinct, the votes were off by hundreds, in favor of George W. Bush and other Republicans.

Hmm. Which was right? The polling tape Volusia gave to Black Box Voting, specially printed on Nov. 15, without signatures, or the ones with signatures, printed on Nov. 2, with up to 8 signatures per tape?

Well, then it became even more interesting. A Volusia employee boxed up some items from an office containing Lana Hires’ desk, which appeared to contain — you guessed it — polling place tapes. The employee took them to the back of the building and disappeared.

Then, Ellen B., a voting integrity advocate from Broward County, Florida, and Susan, from Volusia, decided now would be a good time to go through the trash at the elections office. Lo and behold, they found all kinds of memos and some polling place tapes, fresh from Volusia elections office.

So, Black Box Voting compared these with the Nov. 2 signed ones and the "special’ ones from Nov. 15 given, unsigned, finding several of the MISSING poll tapes. There they were: In the garbage.

So, Wynne went to the car and got the polling place tapes she had pulled from the warehouse garbage. My my my. There were not only discrepancies, but a polling place tape that was signed by six officials.

This was a bit disturbing, since the employees there had said that bag was destined for the shredder.

By now, a county lawyer had appeared on the scene, suddenly threatening to charge Black Box Voting extra for the time spent looking at the real stuff Volusia had withheld earlier. Other lawyers appeared, phoned, people had meetings, Lana glowered at everyone, and someone shut the door in the office holding the GEMS server.

Black Box Voting investigator Andy Stephenson then went to get the Diebold "GEMS" central server locked down. He also got the memory cards locked down and secured, much to the dismay of Lana. They were scattered around unsecured in any way before that.

Everyone agreed to convene tomorrow morning, to further audit, discuss the hand count that Black Box Voting will require of Volusia County, and of course, it is time to talk about contesting the election in Volusia

Forum posts

  • http://www.blackboxvoting.org

    http://www.votergate.tv

  • http://www.blackboxvoting.org

  • Who really won? I dunno...gotta audit.

    votergate.tv

    blackboxvoting.ORG

  • What pisses me off is that no one will be dealing with the hacking of the Primaries...

    • Kerry has exposed himself to be a fool- still sitting on $51 million while Cobb and Badnarik raise funds for the recount. Why didn’t Kerry spend that money trying to win? !!

      Kerry did not win the primaries thanks to his great speaking style (gag-me) - it’s entirely possible that they were rigged as well. We need to have a new primary with real debates, not about ’electability’ and other bogus issues chosen by the likes of Dan Rather and Elizabeth Bumiller.

      After this stolen election is fully exposed, we’ll need a whole new election anyway because all of the house and senate races could have been fixed, as well as important initiatives in each state like the casinos in Miami, proportional representation in Colorado, and the decriminalize marijuana bill in Alaska. The mob wants those casinos, the mob wants to keep marijuana illegal.... why wouldn’t they take advantage of this new easy-rig election system they’ve set up?

    • Good observation. Your not alone. Dean, the outsider...#1, quickly falls to last, because of a scream? Because of a media smear? because people dropped him for the scream? I didn’t see people running out of that hall...in fact, people are screaming with him.

      Then #3 is suddenly #1? All of the candidates ripped kerry in the debates, even the dove kucinich.

      Kerry better stop using his bro and start talking, or the doubt will keep mounting.

      If you would like to see the underbelly, watch the award winning "horns and halos". Learn the "dirty tricks" they use, that they learned from nixon. This is what homeland security is, it’s like a mask to hide the covert fbi/cia "lists" they had on political dissidents back on in the 60’s. As well as the cointel pro ops that are now outsourced to private companies just like, let’s say...security at Abu-ghraib, cleanup at ground zero, and on and on.

      http://www.hornsandhalos.com/

    • Dean was planted to take the wind out the anti-war crowd. He was a set-up to distract from the real anti-war candidate Dennis Kucinich, who speaks for the true majority who want peace, sanity and protection from the corporations who have taken over our country.

      I do believe the primary election was stolen as well. There were lots of reported problems in California to the extent diebold was supposed to be decertified, not sure if it was.

      Does anyone really think John Kerry was the best we had to offer? Why did he focus on himself and his vietnam war record at the convention? It sure seemed that the repubs capitalized on that immediately afterward and he let them. Why couldn’t anyone talk about Bush or the war at the democratic convention? Why did he let him cheat in the debates? He even tried to make W look good in the debate...he’s a good Dad uh huh....It sure seems like John Kerry is on the side of Bush, not the American people, he certainly is not giving the democrats a good name.

      Thank God for third parties who still give a damn about our democracy

    • THANK GOD FOR BEV HARRIS!

    • Yes, I admire these type of women. No, she’s not carmen electra. She’s hardcore in your face talking sense, not liberal conspiracy theories like anne coulter...who just put her foot in her mouth by the way.

      She attacked(what else is new, yawn), Oberlmann of MSNBC for doing 15 minutes on his show on voting IRREGULARITIES. He made sure, not to leave himself open...and basically dismissed it all at the end. He’s got kids to feed too right? Not everyone is ready to give up their positions based on integrity, knowing the bush regime will financially ruin you, have you chased out of the country...or you may just dissappear on your own when you get the message. Sort of like the author of fortunate son, you might be able to ask him about these tactics...except he committed suicide alone in a motel room...leaving a brand new family behind. But don’t worry, just like Andrew Veal, "they found a note".

      In any case, she says he thinks bush "stole" the election and is "paranoid". He never says that, implies that, or even goes near that. Sounds more like "Annie get your dumbs", is the paranoid one...she’s the one talking about liberal conspiracies, she’s the one who is so paranoid about liberals...she has to write a book about it, she is the one that said the word: STOLE.

      Yeah, we know Anne, getting tough defending your lies and PROVING your credibility, keep scratching kitten. Did she take barbara olson’s spot?

      Now we will see the troll lateral commission or perhaps Al-cia-duh come here and start talking about how this guy is a conspiracy nut...heheh, or maybe we’ll hear the ever popular tin-foil hat technique. All played out tactics for the weak minds.

      Why doesn’t Anne talk about blackboxvoting.org?...well, because that’s a liberal conspiracy...cuckoo-cuckoo.

    • She is doing a great job. But needs help. www.power-on.info in the UK is spreading the message. Take a peek. Useful info on Diebold / ATM’s etc., share price.

      Bush and his gangstas would do anything to win, and they did. get the popular vote out - and they did.

    • Thanks for the link.

      It’s funny you mention ATM’s...because just last month, Diebold just happened to secure the bid for all the ATM’s...in....are you ready....Saudi Arabia....well look at that, there goes another one of those coincidence theories.

      Luckily we still have the "right to bear arms", that’s probably the only thing that’s keeping us from falling under a totaliterian regime. The democrats work this side, while the republicans work the other side....it’s pretty good. Perhaps you’ve heard of it...it’s called good cop/bad cop.