ACORN Fined by Nevada Judge for 'Banana Republic' Style Misconduct
A Nevada judge dealt the bankrupt Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), a financial deathblow, a $5,000 fine, for "making a mockery of our election system,” in an improper voter compensation case.
Attorneys for the controversial activist group entered a guilty plea on behalf of their client for one count of illegally compensating volunteers to register voters, but complained about the amount of the fine, noting ACORN's financial difficulties.
Judge Donald Mosley imposed the stiffest punishment possible, saying that ACORN's track record of fraud and misconduct mirrors schemes perpetrated in dictatorships.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"It is making a mockery of our election process," Mosley said of ACORN's past.
During the 2008 election, ACORN Nevada illegally paid bonuses to volunteers who could register 21 or more voters in one shift. The incentive was referred to as "21" or "Blackjack," according Fox News reports. Paying volunteers to register voters violates Nevada state election laws.
Additionally, several states including Colorado, Ohio, California and Minnesota have investigated local ACORN chapters and found instances in which the group could be linked to voter-related impropriates.
In the end, ACORN Regional Director Amy Busefink, who headed the nationwide 2008 initiative, Project Vote, pled no contest to the Nevada charges and was sentenced to probation. Nevada Field Director Christopher Edwards pled guilty to one violation and testified against the organization in court.
"To me this is reprehensible. This is the kind of thing you see in some banana republic, Uruguay or someplace, not in the United States," spouted Judge Mosley.
Nevada prosecutors dropped 12 additional felony counts against ACORN after they agreed to plea guilty to one felony count in April.
ACORN lawyer Lisa Rasmussen complained that the amount of the fine was too large given the case was not a voter fraud case. Additionally, ACORN attorney Arthur Schwartz noted that ACORN is in the middle of bankruptcy proceedings.
A statement on the ACORN website notes that the organization was forced into Chapter 7 bankruptcy in November 2010 after funding and contributions to the group dried up amid several charges of voter misconduct and 2009 video footage of workers giving financial advice to an alleged prostitute and pimp.
"The pressure and cost of defending ourselves in multiple investigations as a result of the falsified videos has eroded our organization," wrote ACORN CEO Bertha Lewis.
Schwartz told Fox News that ACORN currently maintains "one small office in New York," real assets in the amount of $4,000 and "liabilities of more than $4 million."
The Christian Post called Schwartz's office to confirm details about the organizations status and ask whether or not ACORN would pay the fine. Someone connected with the organization said Schwartz would return the call, however additional efforts to speak with her were unsuccessful prior to publication.
