Southwest
Texas’ ballot harvesting ‘raids’ lead to outrage in Latino community, civil rights group
![Texas’ ballot harvesting ‘raids’ lead to outrage in Latino community, civil rights group Texas’ ballot harvesting ‘raids’ lead to outrage in Latino community, civil rights group](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1770833816.jpg)
One of the nation’s oldest civil rights organizations plans to seek federal legal action after Texas officials executed searches and seizures relating to alleged illegal ballot harvesting ahead of the 2024 election.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, announced that his office’s Election Integrity unit had executed searches in three South Texas counties last week as part of his ongoing probe.
Paxton said the unit had been working since 2022 to investigate fraud and ballot harvesting allegations, which led to enough evidence to obtain warrants.
However, officials at LULAC – the League of United Latin American Citizens – alleged the warrant searches constituted “raids” and wrongly targeted elderly longtime volunteers who were engaged in lawful ballot collection.
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A woman prepares mail-in ballots to be counted at a polling station in Pennsylvania. (Aimee Dilger/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images/File)
LULAC National President Roman Palomares said he is hoping to go to Washington to meet with Justice Department officials who handle civil rights cases. Palomares alleged that “100%” of those targeted were of Latino or minority ethnicity.
“Two or three of our members were [subject to the searches], and they’re certified [voter] registrants,” he told Fox News Digital. “These are regular people, but for some reason they’re targeting [them].”
“We think it’s unjustifiable. These are tactics that they use to suppress the vote,” Palomares said. “That’s what we feel that’s being done, and that’s why we’re here. I’m here to defend my members.”
While Paxton’s office did not return a request for comment, the attorney general said in a statement that “secure elections are the cornerstone of our republic.”
“We were glad to assist when the District Attorney referred this case to my office for investigation. We are completely committed to protecting the security of the ballot box and the integrity of every legal vote. This means ensuring accountability for anyone committing election crimes,” Paxton said.
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However, Palomares said there may be another political interest in the Uvalde-area counties where the operations took place: Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas Republicans see the 80th State House district as the Democrat seat most primed to flip red in November.
Palomares argued that LULAC volunteers aren’t in Bexar County to help Democrats retain the seat, suggesting the organization is not allowed to do so.
“There are folks that are working to help, not necessarily her, but to get voters registered so they can vote; we’re nonpartisan. We can’t tell them how to vote, but we want to register as many people so they can exercise their right,” he said.
“And those are the folks that have been targeted. And it appears that it’s targeted around this district.”
Abbott’s office did not return a request for comment on the allegation, but it did in January endorse former Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin, the Republican in the race.
![League of United Latin American Citizens pamphlets](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/1724885955_260_Texas-ballot-harvesting-‘raids-lead-to-outrage-in-Latino-community.jpg)
League of United Latin American Citizens pamphlets (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images/File)
Palomares added that one woman subject to the warrant searches was 80 years old and a former member of the LULAC board.
He said law enforcement confiscated her electronics and that she told him she was embarrassed to be stuck outside her house in her nightgown around dawn. He called the way the searches were conducted “intimidation tactics.”
“I don’t think it’s right. You know, she hasn’t committed a crime, hasn’t been convicted, hasn’t been hiding or anything,” Palomares said.
“I mean, these are allegations that they hear from somewhere, and they come in and do things.”
A spokesperson for the Justice Department confirmed receipt of a letter from LULAC on Tuesday but declined to elaborate further.
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Los Angeles, Ca
Notorious Tesla road rage driver may be a free man
![Notorious Tesla road rage driver may be a free man Notorious Tesla road rage driver may be a free man](https://ktla.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/01/snapshot-22.jpg?w=900)
Several women who were victims of a pipe-wielding road rage driver are expressing outrage at the likelihood that he has already been released from prison.
Attorney Gloria Allred hosted a video conference on Wednesday that included statements from several victims of Nathaniel Radimak.
Radimak, 37, was arrested in January 2023 for a series of attacks on Los Angeles area drivers, some of which were recorded on dash camera video. In at least two cases, he was seen on video getting out of his Tesla and striking vehicles with a metal pipe.
At the time of his arrest, prosecutors said Radimak had a lengthy criminal history “which spans nearly two decades and crosses multiple states.”
He faced charges in a 2020 road rage case in Hollywood, during which police allegedly found steroids and more than $30,000 in cash inside his car.
Last September, Radimak pleaded guilty to assault, vandalism, elder abuse and criminal threats and was sentenced to five years in prison in a plea deal that his victims blasted for being reached without their input.
Allred said her clients were notified that Radimak was released from prison on Wednesday after getting credit for 424 days served while awaiting sentencing, 212 for actual days in jail and another 212 days for good behavior.
He no longer has an active record on the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation website.
“I’m very disappointed in the overall outcome of this case leading up to his release,” one victim, identified only as a “Jane Doe,” said on Wednesday’s video conference. “I highly doubt Radimak has learned from his mistakes and will be coming out a changed person after a short time.”
Allred and her clients also shared concern that Radimak would seek retribution.
“I’m worried he will try to find the victims whose names have been released,” the victim said.
Southwest
Texas announces over 1M ineligible voters removed from voting rolls since last presidential election
![Texas announces over 1M ineligible voters removed from voting rolls since last presidential election Texas announces over 1M ineligible voters removed from voting rolls since last presidential election](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/GettyImages-1244621687-scaled-e1724780698468.jpg)
Texas has purged 1.1 million names from voting rolls since the 2020 presidential election after the state found them to be ineligible, Gov. Greg Abbott announced Monday.
Abbott signed election integrity bill SB 1 into law in 2021 that requires the secretary of state to work with the Department of Public Safety to compare information on citizenship status in that agency’s database to the voter rolls. The checks are required to be “monthly.”
“Election integrity is essential to our democracy,” Abbott wrote in a statement. “I have signed the strongest election laws in the nation to protect the right to vote and to crack down on illegal voting.”
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“These reforms have led to the removal of over one million ineligible people from our voter rolls in the last three years, including noncitizens, deceased voters, and people who moved to another state,” he continued.
Voting booths are seen at Glass Elementary School’s polling station in Eagle Pass, Texas. (Mark Felix/AFP via Getty Images/File)
The Texas government has referred cases of ineligible voters participating in an election to Attorney General Ken Praxton for prosecution.
“The Secretary of State and county voter registrars have an ongoing legal requirement to review the voter rolls, remove ineligible voters, and refer any potential illegal voting to the Attorney General’s Office and local authorities for investigation and prosecution,” Abbott wrote.
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He added, “Illegal voting in Texas will never be tolerated. We will continue to actively safeguard Texans’ sacred right to vote while also aggressively protecting our elections from illegal voting.”
![Texas Gov. Greg Abbott](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/1724860034_541_Texas-announces-over-1M-ineligible-voters-removed-from-voting-rolls.jpg)
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (Brandon Bell/Getty Images/File)
The governor’s office offered a chart that breaks down reasons for removal from the voting rolls and categorized estimates for individuals in each category.
The largest group of Texas residents disqualified in the audit was “voters on the suspense list” – people who have failed to properly confirm their residential address in the state. More than 463,000 individuals were included in this category.
The second-most prominent category was “deceased people” still included on the voting rolls, which numbered more than 457,000.
The governor’s office said approximately 6,500 noncitizens were purged from the rolls, and almost 2,000 of those noncitizens are alleged to have cast votes in past elections.
Read the full article from Here
Los Angeles, Ca
Lebron James, Jayson Tatum and more to star in Netflix NBA series
![Lebron James, Jayson Tatum and more to star in Netflix NBA series Lebron James, Jayson Tatum and more to star in Netflix NBA series](https://ktla.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/08/AP24216648809921.jpg?w=900)
Netflix is pulling back the curtain on five of the NBA’s major stars in the new sports series “Starting 5.”
The 10-part series follows the lives of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, the Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler, the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards, the Sacramento Kings’ Domantas Sabonis and the Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum.
Fans will get “an intense, behind-the-scenes look at five of the league’s best players,” according to the streamer.
“The series captures all five athletes in their battles on and off the court as they chase greatness, push through injuries, and balance the demands of family and legacy,” Netflix explained in a media release. “James exerts himself harder than ever to stay healthy — and dominant — in his 21st season, while Edwards electrifies with his rapid rise. Butler’s relentless drive propels the Heat, Sabonis anchors the Kings with his versatile play, and Tatum leads the Celtics in their quest for a record 18th championship.”
The series is produced by James’ media platform Uninterrupted in association with former president Barack Obama’s Higher Ground Productions and former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions.
“Starting 5” follows other behind-the-scenes sports series like “The Receiver” and “Quarterback,” which followed the NFL’s top receivers and quarterbacks from the last two seasons.
All 10 45-minute episodes of “Starting 5” will premiere on Oct. 9 on Netflix.
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