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Former U.S. Rep. Scott Taylor campaign staffer indicted in petition forgery scandal
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| Contributor | Charlotte Rose |
| Last Edited | Charlotte Rose May 07, 2019 01:59pm |
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| Category | News |
| Author | Jane Harper |
| News Date | Tuesday, May 7, 2019 07:00:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | A former campaign staffer for ex-Congressman Scott Taylor was charged Monday with submitting forged signatures on a petition to get a third-party candidate on the ballot to siphon votes from his opponent.
A grand jury indicted Lauren Creekmore Peabody on two counts of election fraud, said Circuit Court Clerk Tina Sinnen. The crime is a felony punishable by one to 10 years in prison and a $2,500 fine.
An arrest warrant for Peabody was issued afterward, Sinnen said, but she didn't know if it had been served.
Peabody is one of several members of the former congressman's campaign staff who circulated petitions to help independent congressional candidate Shaun Brown get on the ballot to compete against Taylor, a Republican, and Democrat Elaine Luria.
Roanoke Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell was asked to look into the allegations of forged signatures.
He wrote in a news release Monday that investigators determined there was no collusion between Taylor's staff and Brown's to have her run as an independent candidate. Brown made the decision on her own in late May, the release said. Taylor's staff then met sometime around June 1 and decided to use its campaign resources to help her collect the 1,000 valid signatures required to run.
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"Whatever their motivation for that decision was, the bottom line is that circulating petitions in accordance with the law on behalf of a third party is not a crime," Caldwell wrote in his release. "Further, based upon information currently available, there does not appear to have been a directive or an expectation that these petitions would be circulated in violation of Virginia law."
It was not known Monday what Peabody's position was with the campaign or how long she |
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