Austin Mayor Douglas Campbell was charged Tuesday with felony voter fraud and conspiracy following an investigation into allegations that he tampered with absentee ballots during the 2011 Democratic primary.
Campbell, who previously served as mayor of Salem, turned himself in Tuesday afternoon at the Scott County Jail in Scottsburg after Special Prosecutor Barry Brown of Bloomington filed charges.
Also charged in the investigation was Terry Danner, Austin’s sanitation supervisor, who turned himself in as well.
http://liarcatchers.com/fraud_investigation.html
Campbell and Danner each were charged with two counts of voter fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit voter fraud, all Class D felonies punishable by six months to three years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Both posted surety bonds of $2,500 after turning themselves in. They also attended initial hearings before Special Judge Nicholas South in Scott Superior Court.
The investigation into election irregularities began in June after Brandon White, a losing primary challenger, filed affidavits from four voters in Scott Circuit Court who accused Campbell and Danner of driving to their homes in Campbell’s pickup and asking for their completed ballots.
One woman alleged that Campbell filled out her incomplete ballot and took it with him, according to court records.
Under Indiana law, it’s a Class D felony for anyone except an election inspector or another appointed election official to handle an absentee ballot or to assist someone who needs help filling one out. Voters must complete them at the county clerk’s office or in front of a traveling voting board, which visits senior centers and the homebound. Voters also can mail ballots to the clerk’s office.
White said the charges vindicate people who stepped forward to report the allegations. “A lot of people in the community are relieved,” he said.
Brown declined to comment on the evidence gathered. But he praised state police Detective Scott Stewart, saying “his performance was professional, thorough and meticulous, and I’m grateful for this investigative efforts.”
Questions raised about the mayor’s primary didn’t sideline Campbell, who handily won in the spring and captured a second term in the city of 4,700 last November.
Phone messages left for Campbell on his cell phone were not returned. His lawyer, Kathleen Sweeney of Indianapolis, did not respond to two messages left at her office.
Danner did not return message left at a home number. And his lawyer, Michael E. Krupp of Indianapolis, did not respond to messages left at a phone number listed in court records.
Meanwhile, city officials in Austin said they don’t think the arrests will affect day-to-day operations. Campbell told city clerk-treasurer Dillo Bush on Tuesday morning that he doesn’t intend to resign and that “it’s going to be business as usual,” Bush said.
Of the arrests, Bush said: “Obviously it’s troubling, but I can’t even say what I think. This is new ground.”
Campbell’s annual salary is $47,722, while Danner’s is $43,498, according to city records.
Campbell was Salem mayor for about six years before he resigned in 2002 and moved to the northern Scott community where his wife Debbie grew up. When residents voted to switch the town to a city in 2006, they elected Campbell as the city’s first mayor in November 2007.
Voters asked city leaders to help clean up trash and junked cars — and the state police also have cracked down on illegal drugs and other criminal activity. Troopers have made dozens of drug-related arrests since the conversion from a town government.
Campbell said shortly after he took office that he expected to lead the revitalization: “If we can instill pride, we will go forward,” he told The Courier-Journal in a 2008 interview.
