McHenry staffer/roomie pleas to vote fraud
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One down. How many more local, state, and national Republican vote fraud and/or sexual abuse court cases to go?
This morning at the Gaston County Courthouse, Patrick McHenry former staffer, aide, and roomie Michael Aaron Lay took a “deferred prosecution deal.”
Which amounts to six months unsupervised probation, during which time he must complete 100 hours of community service, $240.50 in court costs and a $250.00 community service fee, for a grand total of $440.50.
If Lay does all that, District Attorney Locke Bell says he will voluntarily dismiss the charges.
I need some help here. If you take a deal and the charges are dropped, does that mean legally it didn’t happen? So did he commit voter fraud or is this a Spiro Agnew nolo contendere-type thing?
For more on Michael Aaron Lay’s voter fraud case with its ties to Patrick McHenry as both roommate and staffer look here and here and here and here and here.
Thanks to Jerimee and anonymous for the heads up and photos. And crossposted everywhere.
16 Comments
August 9th, 2007 at 4:06 pm
Just noticed the matching wrinkled seersucker suits shared by DA Locke Bell and Lay’s attorney Thom Goolsby (of Wilmington). Just like To Kill a Mockingbird. Not.
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August 9th, 2007 at 6:19 pm
What is it with this McHenry bunch and the hair that looks like dogs’ asses?
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August 9th, 2007 at 6:39 pm
what an astute observation.
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August 9th, 2007 at 9:36 pm
Hey – I have a dog.
That’s insulting.
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August 9th, 2007 at 10:11 pm
But don’t you think that hair on a dog’s ass would be pretty cute?
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August 9th, 2007 at 11:12 pm
You know……I think you may be right!
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August 9th, 2007 at 11:29 pm
I just heard that he could get this record expunged. Can any legal types out there confirm????
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August 10th, 2007 at 2:40 am
The Hickory Record is reporting that Lay did plead guilty but can sit for the bar in February.
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August 10th, 2007 at 7:41 am
Well I’ve been thinking about getting an Airedale.
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August 10th, 2007 at 10:44 am
Okay, I’ve got the news on expungement, etc. Since they reduced the charges to misdemeanors, it can all go away like it didn’t happen. I guess that’s what they got DA Locke Bell to do between Monday and Thursday. On Monday (although no one but me reported it), Lay turned down the plea agreement because he was still thinking that he could get away with it. (I guess the coolaid McHenry served him in 04 was still having an effect on his newly legally-trained brain.)
Also note that the Hickory and Charlotte papers posted this news around midnight. (CO even labeled it “breaking.”) But now there are a dozen stories that have been posted since. Good timing for the McHenry folks, don’t you think? How do they coordinate this stuff. Do you think they arrange it all or that the newspaper people are so intimidated they bury (or fail to report the news) as a matter of habit?
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August 10th, 2007 at 12:18 pm
It’s up to us to NOT let it go away like it didn’t happen.
Maybe we can’t stop the system from letting these buttholes get away with their dirty tricks but we can damned sure keep these stories alive…forever.
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August 10th, 2007 at 12:51 pm
Republicans are stumped as to how to stop this guy. Young Republicans feel manipulated, bullied and betrayed by him. He continues to con and manipulate naive college republican staffers and volunteers. Local Republicans who speak against him are harassed and told to stick with the program. He knows grassroots politics and he knows his district.
I’m not sure there’s much anyone can do at this point.
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August 10th, 2007 at 3:23 pm
Duh. I just figured out the Airedale comment.
Hey, rip, do they have cute curly hair on their asses?
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August 10th, 2007 at 4:42 pm
“Hey, rip, do they have cute curly hair on their asses?”…..says DQ
I don’t know about the “cute curly” part. But I’ll look a little closer, just for you, next time.
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August 10th, 2007 at 4:43 pm
Thanks, you make me feel loved.
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August 10th, 2007 at 8:58 pm
Over at NC Conservative, Judson Cox has done a complete overview of the situation. (You’ll note he pimps me so, of course, I’m returning the favor). But his analysis is sound. And he has two things of particular note. One, this is how the McHenry folk are playing the story:
Also, and more importantly, check out this nugget:
I’m not sure why the state would keep finance reports on Congressional campaigns (I assume that’s what he means) but it looks worthy of note.
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