YORK COUNTY, Pa. — The York County District Attorney's Office says they are looking into voter registration referrals for criminal investigation from the York County Board of Elections.
Officials say that these referrals are from the batch of voter registrations declined by the Board of Elections.
The DA's office says that all voter registration applications referred for criminal investigation were assigned to the Chief County Detective, and final decisions regarding charges will be made by the First Assistant District Attorney Tim Barker.
York County District Attorney Dave Sunday is up for election next week, and therefore, cannot be a part of the investigation.
You can read the full press release from First Assistant District Attorney Tim Barker here:
By way of update, the York County District Attorney’s Office received voter registration referrals for criminal investigation from the York County Board of Elections. These referrals are from the batch of 3,087 voter registration received by the Board of Elections, as reported in their previously issued statement dated October 30, 2024.
All voter registration applications referred for criminal investigation were assigned to our Chief County Detective, who in turn is working with a team of County Detectives to investigate each application. The investigative process has multiple levels to it. Initial investigative review involves comparisons of the suspect applications to databases known and commonly used by law enforcement agencies. Following this initial aspect of the investigation, each application is then subject to further assignment to a specific County Detective, who will use all applicable investigative techniques to determine whether criminal activity has occurred. Following the completion of the investigation, the information gathered by our County Detectives will then be reviewed as a team with executive prosecutors within this office. Final decisions regarding whether charges are applicable will be made by the First Assistant District Attorney.
A critical component of these investigations and charging decisions will be centered upon evaluation of all available facts and if they constitute the elements of any crimes found in the election code or other areas of criminal law beyond a reasonable doubt. Specifically, we will seek to determine the intent behind the submission of the voter registration application. Clearly there is a difference between innocent mistakes and criminal intent. Where we find a criminal act occurred and the facts support the existence of a necessary criminal intent to commit that act, charges will be filed, and this office will prosecute.
The York County District Attorney’s Office treats any allegation of potential election fraud seriously and as a priority. Furthermore, as with every case investigated and prosecuted by this office, we will follow the law and every ethical standard that governs the role of a prosecutor. While we cannot comment at this time on any specific allegation referred to this office due to their ongoing investigation status, we want to assure the public that the procedures we have in place for investigating these matters and making appropriate charging decisions guarantee that a full and fair process is in place to enforce our election laws and seek justice.
This comes after an investigation into nearly 2,500 fraudulent applications in Lancaster County.
Election Day is set for Nov. 5.