Jan 15, 2021:
DOJ: No charges will be filed in case over discarded Pennsylvania ballots | The Hill
Sep 30, 2020:
During an online news conference Pennsylvania Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar said the following regarding the discarded ballots:
The investigation is still going on, but from the initial reports we've been given, this was a bad error. This was not intentional fraud. So training, training, training.
Source:
Scolforo, Mark. (September 30, 2020). "9 discarded ballots weren't fraud, state election chief says". Associated Press. Retrieved 2020-09-30.
Sep 25, 2020:
Luzerne County Manager David C. Pedri released a statement regarding the discarded ballots.
In the statement, Pedri said that a seasonal independent contractor who was hired to sort incoming mail "incorrectly discarded into the office trash UMOVA [Uniformed Military and Overseas Voters Act] ballots." Pedri also said that temporary contractor was "removed from service and informed not to return."
Pedri stated that all of the garbage from the Elections Bureau for the three days the contractor was working had been secured and searched.
Pedri went on to say:
Luzerne County will be providing supplemental extensive training to both full time staff and temporary seasonal independent contractors and has a security camera in the Elections Bureau to actively monitor and ensure that all staff are strictly adhering to proper procedures and protocols. The Pennsylvania Department of State has also been contacted to provide additional assistance regarding training and best practices.
Pedri concluded by saying that although this event has "cast a concern", the system of checks and balances in Pennsylvania elections works.
Source:
(September 25, 2020). "Luzerne County's Response to the Requested Investigation of UMOVA Ballots". Just the News. Retrieved 2020-09-26.
Sep 24, 2020:
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania released a revised statement regarding an investigation into a handful of mail-in ballots that may have been improperly handled at the Luzerne County Board of Elections in Pennsylvania.
Here's the full text of the statement entitled "Revised Statement Of U.S. Attorney Freed On Inquiry Into Reports Of Potential Issues With Mail-In Ballots":
HARRISBURG - On Monday, September 21, 2020, at the request of Luzerne County District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis, the Office of the United States Attorney along with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Scranton Resident Office, began an inquiry into reports of potential issues with a small number of mail-in ballots at the Luzerne County Board of Elections.
Since Monday, FBI personnel working together with the Pennsylvania State Police have conducted numerous interviews and recovered and reviewed certain physical evidence. Election officials in Luzerne County have been cooperative. At this point we can confirm that a small number of military ballots were discarded. Investigators have recovered nine ballots at this time. Some of those ballots can be attributed to specific voters and some cannot. Of the nine ballots that were discarded and then recovered, 7 were cast for presidential candidate Donald Trump. Two of the discarded ballots had been resealed inside their appropriate envelopes by Luzerne elections staff prior to recovery by the FBI and the contents of those 2 ballots are unknown.
Our inquiry remains ongoing and we expect later today to share our up to date findings with officials in Luzerne County. It is the vital duty of government to ensure that every properly cast vote is counted.
Source:
(September 24, 2020). "Revised Statement Of U.S. Attorney Freed On Inquiry Into Reports Of Potential Issues With Mail-In Ballots". justice.gov. Retrieved 2020-09-26.
In its first (prior) statement/release, the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Middle District of Pennsylvania stated that all nine ballots were cast for Trump. Today's release reduces that number to seven.
Because the releases specifically state that the discarded ballots were cast for Trump, some people are of the opinion that this information should have been withheld from the releases until the investigation has been fully completed and all the facts are known. In other words, by disclosing this information now is making a political statement in favor of Trump's ongoing claim of mail-in voter fraud. This sentiment was voiced by former DOJ Chief of Counterintelligence & Export Control Section David Laufman, Former Department of Justice official Justin Levitt, and Kristen Clarke, executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
Source:
Wiersima, Alisa; Karson, Kendall; Malin, Alexander. (September 24, 2020). "US attorney in battleground Pennsylvania investigating 'small number of mail-in ballots' found in trash". ABC News. Retrieved 2020-09-26.
Cassidy, Christina A.; Scolforo, Mark. (September 26, 2020). "Probe into 'discarded' ballots becomes campaign outrage fuel". Associated Press. Retrieved 2020-09-26.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania also posted a release/letter to Shelby Watchilla (Director of Elections of Luzerne County Bureau of Elections) explaining, in minute detail, the results of its investigation so far. The release notes that in Pennsylvania, the opening of military or overseas ballots, absentee ballots, or mail-in ballots is "contrary to Pennsylvania Department of State guidance."
Sep 22, 2020:
Stephanie Salavantis (Republican), the District Attorney for Luzerne County, posted a statement/release on Twitter. The release states that her office was notified on September 17, 2020 by Luzerne County Administration about issues with a small number of ballots. The release also states that her office began an investigation, that it notified the U.S. Attorney's office, and that as of September 21 federal authorities assumed "lead investigative authority of this incident."
Source:
Salavantis, Stephanie. (September 22, 2020). "Office of the District Attorney | Luzerne County". Twitter. Retrieved 2020-09-26.
More:
This information just seems to add to the continuing disgrace of how our votes are handled actually, mishandled!