Ron Jaworski.
Posted on 08/31/2017 8:30:27 AM PDT by PGR88
A candidate for Lackawanna City Council with a felony conviction has survived an effort to kick him off the ballot because of his crime.
Opponents in Lackawanna's First Ward challenged Mohamed T. Albanna's petition to be on the ballot because of his 11-year-old conviction for illegally sending $5.5 million to Yemen, his native country.
The Erie County Board of Election commissioners unanimously rejected two challenges to Albanna's petitions following a hearing.
"That kind of blew it out of the sky," said Albanna, owner of AB&S Wholesale on Clinton Street.
Albanna was prosecuted under the Patriot Act during an era in which the Justice Department aggressively investigated numerous American Muslims after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Prosecutors found no evidence that Albanna was funding terrorist activities.
Albanna said there was only one victim - himself - in the crime.
"It should not matter because there was no victim in the case except me," said Albanna. "That money sent overseas was money earned by more than 1,000 people and sent to their families. The assumption that the money was mine had no basis in fact."
The issue raised in the ballot challenges was whether Albanna's crime was a crime of moral turpitude. The Lackawanna City Charter bars anyone convicted of such a crime from holding public office.
The challenge was raised by John Ingram, a community activist running against Albanna in a Conservative Party primary. Ingram had previously said he would not make the felony conviction an issue. Daniel Koziol, a member of the Conservative Party and First Ward resident, also filed a challenge.
"Both objections claimed that Albanna had pled guilty to a crime of moral turpitude and he would not be qualified to serve in office, but both Commissioner (Ralph M.) Mohr and myself rejected them," said Jeremy J. Zellner, the Democratic elections commissioner.
Albanna maintained his commitment to people in Lackawanna.
"That felony does not describe me then, and it does not describe be now," Albanna said. "I will always be committed to the betterment of the First Ward and the City of Lackawanna."
Neither Ingram nor Koziol appeared at the hearing July 31 at the Board of Elections office, according to Mohr, the Republican commissioner.
Philip M. Marshall, a defense attorney, represented Albanna at the hearing. Marshall noted that the federal statute Albanna pled guilty to in 2006 had changed.
"There was not a requirement of intent to the crime he admitted to," said Mohr. "Based on those facts, both Commissioner Zellner and myself agreed we could not go that extra step to determine that he would be disqualified from serving if elected. We overruled the objections and placed his name on the ballot."
In the Sept. 12 primary election, Albanna and Ingram will be running against each other for the Conservative Party nomination. Only First Ward voters enrolled in the Conservative Party can vote in that race.
Albanna will be on the Nov. 7 general election ballot on the Democratic Party line. No candidates will be on the Republican Party line.
Ingram, who had filed petitions to run on the Democratic, Conservative and Working Families ballot lines against Albanna, was removed by the election commissioners from the Democratic line due to insufficient petitions, said Mohr.
Both candidates lost the Working Families line for insufficient petition, Mohr said.
Ingram has since filed an independent nomination petition to obtain a second line on the general election ballot, Mohr added.
Crimes of Moral Turpitude are a resume enhancement in New York State.
Heh, it’s Western NY where corruption in the government is almost a prerequisite for holding office.
... except for when I want to blow it up!
Sure.
And those Buddhist monks who lined up to give Al Gore exactly $5,000 each dug into their own pockets to donate.
Hsi Lai Temple in Los Angeles. The nuns say they were told to solicit as much as $5,000 from temple followers for lunch with Gore, and collected $45,000.
Then, the day after the fund-raiser, a call came from longtime Gore fund-raiser Maria Hsia, who said she needed more money fast.
Mr. SANDY MATTICE (Majority Counsel): You knew you needed to come up with that additional $55,000 as quickly as possible, right?
Unidentified Woman: (Through translator) Yes.
MYERS: So monks and nuns were asked to make out $5000 checks to the DNC and then were reimbursed by the temple.
Woman: (Through translator) Yes.
https://static.nbclearn.com/files/nbcarchives/site/pdf/33598.pdf
Ron Jaworski.
Ken522 wrote: "Albanna said. "I will always be committed to the betterment of the First Ward and the City of Lackawanna. ..except for when I want to blow it up!"
Given this individual's identity, "Mohamed T. Albanna" residents/potential constituents should demand an enforceable and clear written definition of "betterment from this individual because his identity alone should be sounding alarms...
In 1928 Hasan Al-Banna founded the Muslim Brotherhood, which today is the most powerful organization in Egypt after the government itself. In his treatise,"Jihad", Al-Banna cogently argues that Muslims must take up arms against unbelievers. As he says, “The verses of the Qur’an and the Sunnah summon people in general (with the most eloquent expression and the clearest exposition) to jihad, to warfare, to the armed forces, and all means of land and sea fighting.”
I trust no-one with that identity in general, and in this case, particularly because of his prior conviction, NO ONE SHOULD TRUST HIM or his intentions.
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