Posted on 02/28/2019 9:42:03 AM PST by csvset
It’s been nearly seven months since the launch of a criminal investigation of forged signatures to help get a candidate on the ballot in a November congressional race.
The prosecutor overseeing the investigation said Wednesday, in response to questions from the Richmond Times-Dispatch, that it remains underway.
“The investigation is continuing. I have no further comment,” Roanoke Commonwealth’s Attorney Don Caldwell said in a voicemail to a reporter.
A Virginia Beach circuit judge assigned Caldwell to the case on Aug. 7. The investigation stems from forged signatures submitted by staffers for then-Rep. Scott Taylor, R-2nd, to help get an independent spoiler candidate on the November ballot in Taylor’s bid for a second term against Democrat Elaine Luria.
Independent candidate Shaun Brown qualified for the ballot but was removed by a Richmond circuit judge, who found “out and out fraud” in the signatures Taylor’s staff submitted to help Brown meet the requirement for placement on the ballot.
The apparent motive of the Taylor campaign was to help Brown, a disaffected Democrat and former Democratic congressional candidate who had criticized her party, get on the ballot to dilute votes from Luria.
Judge Gregory L. Rupe ordered Brown removed from the ballot in a lawsuit brought by the Democratic Party of Virginia.
Luria won the election and is now the representative from the congressional district, which includes the Eastern Shore and parts of Norfolk.
Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney Colin Stolle recused himself from the case and recommended Caldwell. Virginia State Police have conducted interviews.
Taylor denied any knowledge of the forged signatures, and during the campaign severed ties with a campaign consultant.
Among the fraudulent signatures were those of a dead man and a woman who had moved to Nevada. Signatures of Del. Glenn Davis, R-Virginia Beach, and his wife, Chelle Davis, also were forged.
pwilson@timesdispatch.com
(804) 649-6061
Twitter: @patrickmwilson
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