'Flagrant violation': Double voting leads to charges against 4 voters, 3 St. Clair Shores assistant clerks

ST. CLAIR SHORES. Mich. (FOX 2) - Four voters and three assistant clerks in St. Clair Shores are facing felony charges after Attorney General Dana Nessel said the voters cast two ballots in the August 2024 primary election.

"They voted twice, once by absentee ballot and once again on election day at their polling places," Nessel said when announcing charges Friday.

Frank Prezzato, 68, Stacy Kramer, 56, Douglas Kempkins, Jr., 44, and Geneva O’Day, 62, were charged with voting absentee and in-person,

Assistant clerks Patricia Guciardo, 73, and Emily McClintock, 42, are each charged with one count of falsifying election returns or records, one count of voting absentee and in person, and one count of offering to vote more than once. Assistant clerk Molly Brasure, 31, was charged with two counts of falsifying election returns or records and two counts each of voting absentee and in person, and offering to vote more than once. 

Nessel said the four voted absentee and submitted their ballots ahead of the election. They then went to their polling places on election day and requested a ballot. They were informed by poll workers that they had already voted after the voter system alerted workers of this. However, after reaching out to a municipal call-in center seeking direction, the workers were directed to issue a second ballot and override the warning saying that the voters had already cast ballots. 

Nessel said that the assistant clerks then illegally altered state voter files saying the absentee ballots were rejected, not received and approved for tabulating. All four double votes were counted, she said. 

Two of the clerks had previously served as election workers and listed their party affiliation during their training as Democrat. Nessel said out of the seven people charged, those are the only ones whose party affiliation was known. 

What happened was described by Nessel as a "flagrant violation of election laws."

The AG also noted that three of the four voters signed affidavits stating that they did not already vote.

"It really took a perfect storm to come together to allow these individuals to double vote," she said. "It's shocking, and it's simply unheard of."

Nessel said what happened is rare.

"Despite common talking points by those who seek to instill doubt in our electoral process, double voting in Michigan is extremely rare. There are procedures in place to ensure this does not happen and that is why it so rarely does. It took a confluence of events and decisions to allow these four people to double vote," Nessel said. "Nevertheless, the fact that four incidents occurred in a municipality of this size raised significant concerns and is simply unheard of." 

After the election, St. Clair Shores clerk Abrial Barrett reported the double voting to Macomb County clerk Anthony Forlini, police, and the Michigan Bureau of Elections. Nessel said it was then referred to her office. She allowed Macomb County Prosecutor Pete Luicdo to investigate the case while her office conducted its own investigation.

Luicido declined to charge those involved, but Nessel's office decided to charge the voters and workers after determining that the law was knowingly broken, she said.

"It’s just clear to us that the handling of this matter was insufficient," Nessel said.

She noted that this could have been a mistake due to changing election laws. 

Nessel reiterated that absentee ballots that have been returned to the clerk cannot be spoiled on election day. When it comes to the November 2024 election, voters have until Oct. 25 to spoil their ballot. 

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson responded with a statement:

"Voting more than once is illegal. Anyone who tries to vote multiple times in an election will get caught and they will be charged.

"We will watch closely to see how the facts bear out in this case. But anyone who thinks they can get away with voting fraud in Michigan should know we will not tolerate any attempt to interfere in our elections.

"I am grateful for the bipartisan, professional election administrators all across Michigan who work hard daily to ensure we count every valid vote, and only valid votes. Our team will continue to work alongside them to prepare for November."

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