This is for personal, noncommercial use only.
Today's Front Page
Gas Buddy
Two more charged with voter fraud in Atlantic City mayoral primary
Print this Article- Font Size:
- Default font size
- Larger font size
ATLANTIC CITY - State Police arrested two more supporters of Councilman Marty Small and his ticket Tuesday for alleged improper use of ballots meant for sick or shut-in voters in the June mayoral primary.
Toni Dixon, 51, of Atlantic City, and Michelle Griffin, 29, of Pleasantville, were charged with two counts each of voter fraud and one count each of tampering with public records, state Attorney General Anne Milgram announced in a news release. Investigators allege they submitted completed messenger ballots that were never given to voters and that they tampered with ballot applications.
The women are the fourth and fifth to be charged in an ongoing state investigation into Atlantic City's messenger ballot drive, a voting method seldom used elsewhere but mastered by now-imprisoned City Council President Craig Callaway and his foundering political organization. All but one of the accused campaign workers have close connections to the loosely knit political group of Callaway friends and family.
Dixon, Callaway's sister, turned herself into State Police at the Atlantic City Expressway barracks and was released on her own recognizance, attorney general spokesman Peter Aseltine said. Police arrested Griffin, wife of Callaway's brother, Jeffrey, at their home in Pleasantville on Tuesday morning.
Investigators dealt similar charges in early June to another Callaway brother, David, Callaway family associate Floyd Tally and LuQuay Q. Zahir, a paid campaign worker for Small.
Both women also allegedly directed absentee voters to sign the ballot application without designating a messenger. Dixon is accused of later designating herself as the messenger. In Griffin's case, the attorney general's office noted that her name was later added as the messenger.
Neither Dixon nor Griffin could be reached for comment Tuesday. A Callaway family member told The Press of Atlantic City that both women did not wish to discuss the charges.
Dixon appeared to be the most active of this year's ballot bearers. According to county documents, Dixon submitted 148 messenger ballot applications, the most of any messenger. However, 58 of them were rejected by the Atlantic County Clerk's Office for various reasons. Griffin submitted 84 applications and the county rejected more than 60 percent of them.
Investigators claim Dixon disenfranchised at least six voters when she delivered ballots to the county that were never received by the intended voter. Griffin allegedly did the same to at least four voters. Some of the ballots delivered by Dixon, including the six under investigation, were among the 127 that were delivered 54 seconds after polls closed on Election Day.
Arguments erupted in front of the county clerk's building in Mays Landing on June 2, when officials questioned whether the votes would be accepted. Members of the Board of Elections were split on whether to count the ballots, but Superior Court Judge Valerie Armstrong later ruled the votes unacceptable.
Dixon has been an active campaigner in Atlantic City for at least a decade. In 2002, she worked with family members on a recall effort against former Councilman Robert L. Johnson. She also worked alongside Small on Bob Levy's successful 2005 mayoral campaign against Mayor Lorenzo Langford, playing an active role in the campaign's messenger ballot drive. A falling out later between Small and the Callaway organization led Dixon to unsuccessfully challenge Small for his 2nd Ward council seat in 2007.
Dixon currently works as a clerk in the city's Landlord-Tenant Affairs Office and earns $23,600 per year. Langford declined comment through a spokesman on whether the status of her job would change because of the charges.
A grand jury also reassembled in Cherry Hill on Tuesday to hear testimony from Atlantic County Clerk Ed McGettigan and Atlantic County Superintendent of Elections John W. Mooney. Mooney declined comment, but McGettigan said the state's questions centered on general departmental procedure during elections.
Subpoenas for grand jury testimony also have been issued to various members of Small's election team, including campaign manager Tom Quirk and the head of Small's absentee-ballot drive, Mark "Johnny" Crumble.
Staff writer Lynda Cohen contributed to this report.
E-mail Michael Clark:
Posted in Top_three on Wednesday, July 1, 2009 3:10 am
6 comments:
Click here to report a comment as abusive.