By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – Thirty-five-year-old Marta Aglubi-Blomstrom was supposed to get her chance to make her plea to one count of voter fraud yesterday, but prosecutors dismissed the charge.
Aglubi-Blomstrom, a Glenoma resident, was summonsed to Lewis County Superior Court earlier this month for allegedly registering to vote and then voting even though she’s not a U.S. citizen. She is from Ghana, a West African country.
Chief Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher said yesterday he dropped the felony charge last week for two reasons.
When he saw her in court, he realized her command of the English language was limited, Meagher said.
“I doubt that she really knew what she was signing,” he said.
Charging papers had stated she filled out her voter registration form online, at first answering no when asked if she was a U.S. citizen, and then changing her response to yes.
Meagher said the other issue that prompted him to dismiss the charge was the Lewis County Auditor’s Office had provided information to law enforcement about the registration that turned out to be mistaken. Meagher couldn’t recall the details, he said.
False information on an application for voter registration is a class C felony, punishable by a maximum of five years in prison or $10,000.
The issue came to the attention of the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office almost two years ago, when Aglubi-Blomstrom’s estranged husband contacted them about it, according to charging documents.
Charges were finally filed in December. Elected Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer said it was among a backlog of some 400 cases he found when he took office in January of last year.
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Read ” ‘Rare’ voter fraud case making its way through local criminal justice system” from Monday February 6, 2012, here
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
MY QUESTION FOR THE PROSECUTOR IS? WHAT IS THIS SAYING TO THE REST OF US. SHE GETS OFF SCOTT FREE IF IT WAS ME YOU WOULD NAIL MY BUTT TO THE WALL. THEN PUT ME UNDER THE JAIL AND USE A STRAW TO FEED ME PEAS.
YOU GO GIRL. GET OFF THE POT AND DO YOUR JOB. BUTTHEAD
I know she speaks English just fine and she is NOT a resident of Glenoma, our Prosecutor sucks! How can he not know where she resides for criminy sakes?