Madison County Democratic chairman arrested (Vote Fraud in Indiana)

CBS 2 Chicago ^ | December 10, 2004 | AP

[Land_of_Lincoln_John]

ANDERSON, Ind. (AP) The Madison County Democratic Party chairman and two other people have been arrested on charges of voter fraud.

Tom Ashley has led the county party for 17 years. He was arrested yesterday on two counts of voter fraud. Indiana State Police say Ashley improperly offered to deliver absentee ballots cast by two Anderson residents.

Police say Ashley's son-in-law, Kyle Barber, delivered ballots and persuaded at least one person to register to vote from an address where he had not lived since 1992. Barber faces 17 counts, including voter fraud, obstruction of justice and aiding or causing perjury.

The third person is Mindy Zeller, who faces charges of voter fraud, voting outside precinct residence and perjury. Authorities say Barber persuaded Zeller to illegally vote in Anderson's 2003 municipal election.

[TWohlford]

From http://www.theheraldbulletin.com/story.asp?id=9132 which is the Anderson (Indiana) newspaper --

According to Indiana State Police, Ashley went to the home of Destiny Arteaga in September 2003 and helped her register absentee. When her ballot arrived in the mail, Ashley returned to her house and told her to vote Democratic. When Arteaga said she would mail in her ballot, he told her it wouldn’t arrive in time. He took her completed ballot.

In another instance, police say Ashley helped Elizabeth Freestone register to vote absentee and then came by later to see if she had voted. She wasn’t sure how to do so. He told her how the ballot worked and then went outside while she voted.

“After she voted, Tom Ashley told her that if she would take her ballot and put it in his truck, which was parked near her house, he would mail it for her. She took the ballot and laid it on the seat of Tom Ashley’s truck,” the probable cause affidavit said.

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ISP lists incidents of voter fraud involving Barber. He is accused of persuading William McGuire to register to vote from his grandmother’s house, although McGuire hadn’t lived there since 1992. Once McGuire’s absentee ballot arrived, Barber returned and told him to vote for Sheila Barber for city clerk. Barber took McGuire’s completed ballot and drove away.

In other instances, police say Barber told people which numbers to punch on their ballots. The voters did not know for whom they voted. Later, Barber instructed them to tell police, if questioned, that they voted the way they wanted to and that they mailed their own ballots.

Police also say that Barber asked Mindy Zeller to sign a voter registration card, filled out by Barber, that listed her address as 2432 Main St., Anderson. The address is the home of Cassie Vetter, who was Zeller’s friend and Barber’s step-daughter. Zeller did not live there.