News Release
10/02/2007
W.A. Drew Edmondson, Attorney General
Multicounty Grand Jury Indicts Three in TABOR Investigation
A Multicounty Grand Jury indictment unsealed today accuses three people of conspiring to defraud Oklahoma’s initiative petition process by hiring non-resident signature gatherers, Attorney General Drew Edmondson said.
Richard Merrill Carpenter, Paul Jacob and Susan Elizabeth Johnson are accused in the indictment unsealed today in Oklahoma County District Court of one count of conspiracy. Carpenter also faces one count of violating the Petition and Referendum Act.
The three are accused of knowingly and illegally hiring and using out-of-state residents to gather signatures in support of a constitutional amendment called the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR.)
“Oklahoma law requires anyone who circulates a petition be a qualified elector, that means a U.S. citizen over the age of 18 and a resident of Oklahoma,” Edmondson said. “The grand jury alleges Carpenter, Jacob and Johnson knew they were violating Oklahoma statute and engaged in a conspiracy to illegally gather signatures.”
Carpenter, 43, is an officer with Oklahomans in Action. Jacob, 47, is with the organization Citizens in Charge, and Johnson, 47, is the head of National Voters Outreach.
The indictment also alleges Carpenter violated the Petition and Referendum Act by “filing a false, fraudulent, felonious and fictitious initiative petition” with the Secretary of State.
According to the indictment, Carpenter filed the petition and signatures “with full knowledge and understanding that said petitions contained numerous signatures gathered by out-of-state circulators who came into the state with intent to leave the state once the TABOR drive was complete.”
According to the attorney general, the state Supreme Court has ruled that signatures gathered by an unqualified person are invalid.
“The right for citizens to petition their government is the very lifeblood of the democratic process,” Edmondson said. “The voices of those Oklahomans who chose to support this petition were silenced because of this alleged conspiracy. We cannot tolerate schemes designed to manipulate our state’s election laws.”