Michigan’s Attorney General Dana Nessel said on Thursday that her office has referred to federal prosecutors an investigation into GOP members who signed and submitted a fraudulent certificate that claimed Trump won Michigan’s electoral votes. Nessel’s office said the group may still face state charges.
“Under state law, I think clearly you have forgery of a public record, which is a 14-year offense, and election law forgery, which is a five-year offense,” Nessel said…
Among those who signed the fake certification were Michigan’s state GOP co-chair, Meshawn Maddock.
The U.S. House Select Committee investigating January 6 also interviewed Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson on November 30, and in early December Benson’s office sent the committee counsel an e-mail regarding the GOP certificate.
Kathy Berden, a Republican national committeewoman from Michigan, sent the GOP electors certificate to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. archivist, Benson’s office and Robert Jonker, the chief judge of U.S. District Court for Michigan’s Western District.
When Berden was asked why the GOP certificate was sent, she responded, “I can’t comment on anything like that. That was a long time ago.”
On December 14, 2020, Republicans gathered at the Michigan Republican Headquarters in Lansing to sign those unofficial documents, and then tried to enter the state Capitol to deliver their own electoral votes. They were denied access by Michigan State Police.
