In a significant legal development, two far-right operatives, John Burkman and Jacob Wohl, have entered no contest pleas over their involvement in a robocall campaign. This campaign was allegedly designed to suppress Black voter turnout in Detroit during the 2020 election.
Following unsuccessful appeals to the Michigan Supreme Court, where they argued that their actions were protected by free speech, the court opted not to hear their case a second time in June. For more on their legal journey, you can read the details here.
According to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, the duo specifically targeted urban areas, including Detroit, with misleading robocalls. These calls falsely warned residents that voting by mail could lead to their personal information being shared with law enforcement and credit companies. You can listen to the audio of the robocall here.
Hear the robocall that aimed to mislead Detroit voters in 2020.
In the months leading up to the 2020 general election, nearly 12,000 residents with Detroit-linked phone numbers received these calls. The robocalls were part of a scheme that ultimately led to no contest pleas for four felony charges.
The false claims were a deliberate attempt to deter mail-in voting by suggesting that personal information would be used against voters. The felonies Burkman and Wohl faced include:
- Bribing or intimidating voters
- Conspiracy to commit an election law violation
- Using a computer to bribe or intimidate voters
- Using a computer to conspire to commit an election law violation
The no contest plea allows the defendants to accept punishment without an admission of guilt. Sentencing is scheduled for December 1 in Wayne County.
Burkman and Wohl have faced similar legal repercussions elsewhere. A federal court mandated corrective calls to dispel the misinformation they spread, while an Ohio judge sentenced them to 500 hours of voter registration work. Additionally, a New York settlement resulted in a fine exceeding $1 million. Read more about these cases here, here, and here.
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