Judge Tosses Motion To Toss Charges Against Political Operatives

DETROIT — A Michigan circuit court judge on Tuesday rejected a motion to dismiss charges filed against two men accused of orchestrating a robocall to intimidate voters in Detroit and other cities with significant minority populations.

Third Circuit Court Judge Margaret Van Houten rejected a motion to quash the information and dismiss the case against right-wing operatives Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl, rejecting the pair's constitutional arguments.

"We are pleased with the court's ruling, and look forward to the case continuing on to the next stage of the proceedings,” Nessel said in a statement Tuesday.

Burkman, 54, of Arlington, Virginia, and Wohl, 22, of Los Angeles, were charged in 2020 on multiple felony charges, including intimidating voters, conspiring to commit an election law violation, using a computer to commit the crime of election law - intimidating voters, and using a computer to commit the crime of conspiracy.

Nessel filed the charges after her office said it looked into allegations that the two political operatives orchestrated a series of robocalls aimed at suppressing the vote in the November general election.

Related: 2 Political Operatives Accused Of Michigan Voter Suppression Bid

The Michigan AG's office said that Burkman and Wohl attempted to deter electors from participating in the November election by creating and funding a robocall targeted at certain area codes, including Detroit and other major U.S. cities with significant minority populations.

The calls were made in late August and went out to nearly 12,000 residents with phone numbers in the 313 area code, according to Nessel. It's believed around 85,000 robocalls were made nationally, though an exact breakdown of the numbers of calls made to each city or state is not available, Nessel said.

Related: Burkman, Wohl Heading To Wayne County Court In Robocall Case

In their motion and oral arguments, Burkman and Wohl argued the calls did not violate Michigan’s voter intimidation law and that the robocalls were protected by the First Amendment.

Van Houten ruled that the district court did not abuse its authority in binding the case to circuit court because the robocall had the potential to deter people from voting by mail.