Part 1 - Absentee Ballot Fraud: Vote Stolen from a Disabled Woman. By Geniusofdespair

Link to the video.

Judith Thompson (in the short video above) tried to vote in North Miami Beach but was told she already voted. She was a victim of absentee ballot voter fraud. The crooks assumed when they stole her absentee ballot that because of her disability Judith would not try to vote on election day. She did go to vote. This is her story.

When I was told of Judith's plight by one of our readers, I called Elections with her on the line to see what could be resolved. They would not send her the absentee ballot envelope or even a copy of what she was supposed to have signed, so I would have to take her down to Elections to see it as she is disabled. I went to pick her up at the Assisted Living Facility on December 20th 2010. When I arrived, she had fallen that morning and I had to wait for them to get her off the floor and ready to go. The plan was I was going to transport Judith to the County Elections Department in Doral and then take her back to her home. I had to help her in and out of the car (with help at elections - not from their staff) as she was paralyzed from the waist down. I also had to lug her wheelchair in and out of the trunk 4 times. Here is the most annoying part about the outing - remember I have nothing to do with this except my goal to help a woman whose vote was stolen from her - and in response to my advocacy, this is what the Elections Department wrote to me:

In the event this request extends past the estimated 15 minutes, then we will provide you with an invoice for actual labor expenses incurred in 15-minute increments.

This made me so angry. You would think they would care about a stolen vote at Elections and want to get to the bottom of it, and they would be happy that I went to so much trouble to get to the bottom of it.

Could Mrs. Thompson have forgotten that she received and returned the ballot? She said no numerous times. As a former County worker, she was sharp as a tack mentally. We compared the ballot envelope signature to a fresh signature sample done by Judith at Elections as well as to the signature on her State identification card. The signature on the absentee ballot envelope when compared with Mrs. Thompson's valid signature wasn't even close. There were three of us looking at the signatures. The envelope signature was very tight compared to her looser hand and the capital letters were written differently. I asked Elections how they verify absentee ballot signature, they said:

The signatures are verified electronically. If the signature on the certificate requires further review, then the certificate is reviewed manually. - Michelle G. McClain, Assistant Deputy Supervisor, Voter Services

It is interesting to note that when Miami Dade County Clerk Harvey Ruvin reviewed petition signatures he did them ALL manually and had a handwriting expert on hand. Maybe the Elections Department's program is not working as it allowed Mrs. Thompson to be disenfranchised by a forged signature. I got a few different stories about how signatures are verified at the Election's Department. I even called the software company that supplies Elections and they were very defensive. I asked them about statistics on accuracy, They never called  back. Joe Centorino at the State's Attorney's office (now head of County's Ethics), at my urging, instituted an investigation into Mrs. Thompson's lost vote.  He said it was difficult proving these cases. His biggest complaint was that there is no penalty for people from campaigns picking up absentee ballots from voters even though it is illegal. He needs to have a penalty to impose on the illegal activity in order to make arrests.

Watch Judith's body language in the video above. She is so defeated and upset because her vote was stolen. It was heartbreaking. Absentee ballot fraud is rampant in Miami Dade County and it is stealing close elections.  Everyone knows it...but no one will lift a finger to stop it. The Judith Thompson story is just one instance of a stolen vote.

Please read the other two parts of this series
Part 2 Absentee Ballot Fraud: My View. By Absentee Ballot Skeptic.
Part 3 - Absentee Ballot Fraud: How it is Done and How You Can Help.

Mrs. Thompson's Absentee Ballot Fraud Investigation Results. By Geniusofdespair

Results of the investigation by ethics investigator Karl Ross -- 
3 absentee ballot were stolen at ALF.

Letter sent to: Gary Solomon, administrator Park Plaza Retirement Residence

RE: Investigation into alleged voter fraud at the Park Plaza Retirement Residence

I am writing to inform you we have closed our investigation into allegations of possible voter fraud affecting three residents at your facility – Judith Thompson, Agnes Keyzer and Daisy Davis.

We thought you should be aware that all three residents appear to have been victimized to some degree by unscrupulous practices involving their absentee ballots. We did not have enough evidence to file charges, but our review of voting records does indicate that all of the women had their ballots or related forms altered, forged or compromised.

We would especially like you to be aware of the alleged statement by a member of your staff, Latarra Kearney, who was said to have told a co-worker she intended to destroy all absentee ballots received by your facility in order to avoid “any more problems” with authorities. She should be strongly counseled that, were such behavior to take place, this could lead to a criminal complaint against her and that the voting records of Park Plaza’s residents should be handled with the utmost care and attention. We would also like to bring to your attention that the Miami-Dade County Department of Elections – per Chapter 101 of Florida Statutes (101.655) – has a program to send staff to ALFs and provide supervised absentee voting to residents.

Thank you Dan Ricker's Watchdog Report Vol. 12 No. 29 for supplying this letter written by Joe Centorino, no thanks to Ethics -- Joe KNEW I was following this issue.
Hit read more to see the results of the investigation (again, thank you Dan Ricker):

Miami Herald Reports EOM's Judith Thompson Story Within Hialeah Early Voting Article. By Geniusofdespair

From the Miami Herald, related to Hialeah Absentee Voting:

Last year, Judith Thompson’s vote was stolen.

Records showed she had voted by mail. Except Thompson never received her absentee ballot.

“Someone else had voted in my name,” Thompson told a committee of Miami-Dade County commissioners last week. “I later spoke with an investigator from the State Attorney’s office, but no one has ever been charged with stealing my vote.”

 One of the reasons: In Miami-Dade, there is no penalty for violating the county ordinance regulating absentee ballots.

That could be about to change. A measure imposing a $1,000 fine or 60 days in jail for breaking the absentee-ballot law cleared the county committee recently with unanimous support.

But any revisions to the law will take place after Tuesday, when Hialeah voters go to the polls in a high-profile mayoral runoff. Current mayor Carlos Hernandez faces former Mayor Raul Martinez on Tuesday.

In that fiery race, no topic has been hotter than absentee voting.

Read the article, it is good...

Watch these two videos.  Video one (catches the flavor of Hialeah voting):  Controversy at Hialeah bus opening. Mayor Hernandez brings bus goers to IHOP and the City Council chair, Isis Garcia-Martinez - a vile woman to be sure, in the mold of Natacha Seijas - is aboard being obnoxious, shouting at a blogger "You are not the press" and "Get out of my way." She is a shrill woman, watch it. You can see each bus rider is given a gift bag as they get off bus. Gift bag and breakfast, not bad for people who are ignored the rest of the year. Here is video one...

Video two (funny worth watching, woman throws plastic water bottle, it is in Spanish):Absentee Ballot Issues - Former Chief of Police follows a campaign worker known for collecting ballots.

Here is the article that explains this second video (Video in Spanish, Article English)

The Miami Herald and El Nuevo Herald (Enrique Flor) are doing a good job on this election.  These videos give you a good flavor of what is going on in Hialeah.

Public Hearing on: Penalty Added to Absentee Voter Fraud. By Geniusofdespair

Okay it is time for the PUBLIC HEARING on the penalty for Picking up/Returning Absentee ballot illegally:

Miami-Dade Infrastructure and Land Use Committee Agenda

Wednesday, November 09, 2011 - County Hall, 111 NW 1st Street

2:00:00 PM

112169 Ordinance
Rebeca Sosa, Prime Sponsor

Other Sponsors: Lynda Bell, Co-Sponsor, Esteban L. Bovo, Jr., Co-Sponsor, Jose "Pepe" Diaz, Co-Sponsor, Audrey M. Edmonson, Co-Sponsor, Sally A. Heyman, Co-Sponsor, Barbara J. Jordan, Co-Sponsor, Dennis C. Moss, Co-Sponsor, Xavier L. Suarez, Co-Sponsor

ORDINANCE REGARDING ABSENTEE BALLOTS; AMENDING SECTION 12-14 OF THE CODE OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, ADDING PENALTIES FOR VIOLATING LIMITS ON PICKING UP AND/OR RETURNING ABSENTEE BALLOTS; PROVIDING SEVERABILITY, INCLUSION IN THE CODE, AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE (SEE ORIGINAL ITEM UNDER FILE NO. 112056) 10/18/2011

The public hearing will be near 2pm as it is high on the agenda. I am hoping Judith Thompson (pictured above) comes to speak. She is actually a hero that cared enough to track down her missing absentee ballot.  Without her perseverance, this change wouldn't be taking place and we would not have a face on a stolen absentee ballot. Most people who have absentee ballot problems say to themselves "Oh, Well" and that is the end of it.  Not Judith, she went to vote when she didn't get hers and was denied the right to vote because her ballot was stolen from the assisted living facility she was living at and someone voted for her.

Public Hearing on Wednesday - Watch the Damn Video Already. By Geniusofdespair

Word is out that some of you are NOT watching videos I post. Well damn it, watch this one!! I will quiz you on it. I will simply say to you: "11/11/11?" If you look at me funny I will turn and never look back, leaving you to try to figure out what the hell the numbers mean. It can also be the code to meeting me, I will be kind to anyone that gives me the numbers...but then STILL quiz on content.

I worked on this project for some time and the least you can do is watch the end results. The ordinance now has 10 sponsors with the addition of Commissioner Monestime.

Looking good County Commissioner Rebeca Sosa (Pictured here with a radiant Judith Thompson)! I have a special thank you for the Commissioner in a blog next week.