I-1098 signature gatherer charged with forgery
OLYMPIA -- A 52-year-old woman has been charged with forging several names while gathering signatures for Initiative 1098.
Claudia McKinney turned in 349 names on 20 petition sheets in support of I-1098, which seeks to impose an income tax on Washington state's wealthier residents, according to the statement of probable cause.
But the Secretary of State's Office became suspicious during routine spot-checking of signatures when they found 125 of the signatures turned in by McKinney did not appear to be legitimate, and 186 others were of non-registered voters, detectives said.
Those 20 petitions were set aside and not counted in the overall petition signature check on the initiative, which still easily passed muster and will be on the November ballot.
Detectives contacted 19 people listed on the signatures, and all 19 verified that it was not their signature posted on the sheet. A handwriting analysis conducted by the State Patrol Crime Lab determined that most of the rest of the signatures on the sheet were not genuine, adding, "Some of the fundamental writing characteristics of Claudia McKinney are present in the writing of the questioned signatures," the document said.
McKinney gathered signatures as a member of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), according to charging papers filed with King County Superior Court. An official with the union told investigators its members are paid for time they spend away from their jobs gathering signatures on their behalf, but are not paid by the signature. The union is fully cooperating with the investigation into McKinney, prosecutors said.
"This has been described as the worst case of attempted signature fraud we have seen," said Secretary of State Sam Reed. "It may be only a tiny percentage of the total signatures, but it does represent an attack on the process, which relies greatly on the integrity of the people who circulate the petitions."
Initiative signature fraud is a felony punishable by five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Claudia McKinney turned in 349 names on 20 petition sheets in support of I-1098, which seeks to impose an income tax on Washington state's wealthier residents, according to the statement of probable cause.
But the Secretary of State's Office became suspicious during routine spot-checking of signatures when they found 125 of the signatures turned in by McKinney did not appear to be legitimate, and 186 others were of non-registered voters, detectives said.
Those 20 petitions were set aside and not counted in the overall petition signature check on the initiative, which still easily passed muster and will be on the November ballot.
Detectives contacted 19 people listed on the signatures, and all 19 verified that it was not their signature posted on the sheet. A handwriting analysis conducted by the State Patrol Crime Lab determined that most of the rest of the signatures on the sheet were not genuine, adding, "Some of the fundamental writing characteristics of Claudia McKinney are present in the writing of the questioned signatures," the document said.
McKinney gathered signatures as a member of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), according to charging papers filed with King County Superior Court. An official with the union told investigators its members are paid for time they spend away from their jobs gathering signatures on their behalf, but are not paid by the signature. The union is fully cooperating with the investigation into McKinney, prosecutors said.
"This has been described as the worst case of attempted signature fraud we have seen," said Secretary of State Sam Reed. "It may be only a tiny percentage of the total signatures, but it does represent an attack on the process, which relies greatly on the integrity of the people who circulate the petitions."
Initiative signature fraud is a felony punishable by five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
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