Aug 4, 2023 - Politics & Policy

Pro-Trump lawyer charged in Michigan voting machine tampering case

Voters cast ballots at a polling location in Southfield, Michigan, U.S., on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020.

Voters cast ballots at a polling location in Southfield, Michigan, in 2020. Photo: Emily Elconin/Bloomberg via Getty Images

A Michigan pro-Trump attorney was charged in a state investigation into attempts to tamper with voting machines after the 2020 election, prosecutors announced Thursday.

Driving the news: Stefanie Lambert, who's repeatedly questioned President Biden's election win and was sanctioned in federal court in 2021 for filing a lawsuit seeking to overturn Michigan's results, pleaded not guilty to four felony charges in court on Thursday afternoon, per AP.

Then-Republican candidate for Attorney General Matthew DePerno claps during former President Donald Trump's remarks during a Save America rally on October 1, 2022 in Warren, Michigan.
Matthew DePerno, then-Republican candidate for Michigan attorney general during a 2022 Trump rally in Warren, has also been charged in the state investigation. Photo: Emily Elconin/Getty Images
  • Lambert was arraigned before a judge on charges of undue possession of a voting machine, conspiracy to commit undue possession of a voting machine, conspiracy to commit unauthorized access to a computer system and willfully damaging a voting machine.

The big picture: The attorney, whom court records listed under the last name Lambert Junttila, is the third and final person to be charged in the state investigation into unauthorized access to vote tabulators, according to prosecutors.

  • Prosecutors on Tuesday announced similar charges against Matthew DePerno, a failed Republican attorney general candidate who was endorsed by former President Trump, and ex-state GOP Rep. Daire Rendon.

What they're saying: "Protecting the election process is of the utmost importance for our state and country," special prosecutor D.J. Hilson said in a statement to media. "This investigation and prosecution is an important step in that direction."

The other side: "My client was a zealous advocate for her clients and she did not violate the law and intends to sue Hilson for malicious prosecution," Lambert's attorney Michael Smith said in a statement to news outlets.

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