Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2024/03/29/crystal-mason-sentenced-to-five-years-after-trying-to-vote-finally-acquitted.html
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I can pretty much guarantee that Crystal Mason will do more time for inadvertently trying to cast one illegal vote than someone else will for telling a state official to “find” eleven thousand.
Once again, the reasons for this disparity remain utterly mysterious.
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I’m willing to hear argument that being a “stop the steal” yahoo is prima facie evidence that you don’t understand how election law works…
Obviously doesn’t apply to all of them. There are definitely plenty of people in the “malice rather than ignorance” box, and I think being a politician probably weighs against it. But both published accounts and my own experience suggests that the average conspiracy nut does not have the background knowledge to understand why the stuff thats being sold to them is, in fact, nonsense (see: all those people sending in videos of election workers and posties doing stuff they’re absolutely meant to, and going “look! Evidence of a crime!”)
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It’s been a couple decades - oh god has it been that long?? - since I worked an election. But I thought a provisional ballot was issued when there was something wrong with the voter registration. They weren’t in the system correctly, possibly they were at the wrong location but insisted to vote there anyway, or there was a question about eligibility. So a provisional ballot is issued, but it would be approved to be counted or rejected later once it was sorted out on what was going on.
ABSURD that someone casting a single vote in good faith gets any time at all, while someone repeatedly making illegal votes gets a fine. It’s most likely blatant racism and sexism.
Also, I don’t know what she did to to lose her rights, but at some point, they should be restored.
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According to the wiki
(1) 12,000 people have done exactly as you say and cast a provisional ballot. 7/8 were rejected. 1/12,000 were charged and convicted of voter fraud. So yeah, definitely cherry picking.
(2) Apparently she pleaded guilty to tax fraud for inflating clients’ returns. So like, not something you should do, but also not monstrous.
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I love this quote from her:
“I am overjoyed to see my faith rewarded today,” Mason said in a statement shared by ACLU of Texas. “I was thrown into this fight for voting rights and will keep swinging to ensure no one else has to face what I’ve endured for over six years, a political ploy where minority voting rights are under attack. I’ve cried and prayed every night for over six years straight that I would remain a free Black woman.”
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The hypocritical prosecutor who railroaded her
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Solicited her staff for their personal contact information so she could harangue them for donations for her re-election campaign. Her excuse? SHE DIDN’T KNOW IT WAS AGAINST THE RULES.
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Let a Republican justice of the peace off with probation after he submitted an application with fake signatures to get on the ballot. That’s tampering with a government record.
Once you’re in power in Texas, you can pretty much do as you please without repercussions. See Ken Paxton for further details.
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