Article: Election Activist files criminal charges v. Washoe County Registrar Daniel Burk

PRESS RELEASE

ELECTION ACTIVIST FILES CRIMINAL CHARGES AGAINST WASHOE COUNTY REGISTRAR DANIEL BURK WITH WASHOE COUNTY SHERIFF

For Immediate release: 04/13/07
Contact: P. Axelrod 775-787-1909

Election activist, Patricia Axelrod, has filed criminal charges with the Washoe County Sheriff's Department against the County's Registrar of Voters, Daniel Burk. Axelrod has been investigating Nevada and Washoe County election and voter registration practices since 2004 and she has repeatedly and publicly asserted Washoe County 2004 and 2006 election wrongdoing. October 25, 2006 she filed a product defect lawsuit against the manufacturer of Nevada's voting machines - Sequoia Voting Machines. Axelrod alleges that Registrar Burk has unlawfully destroyed 2006 Election Day precinct voter intake records called 'Voted History Listings' in an attempt to hide Washoe County election malfeasance and also that he threatened her with bodily harm by stating that she was going to 'end up in the hospital' in retaliation for her criticism of his office as well as the County's voting machines. Nevada law defines harassment as a misdemeanor and destruction of election records as a felony. The Washoe County Sheriff's Department has assigned Axelrod's charges with Case #WC07-1944 and Deputy Don Patch is investigating the matter. Axelrod expects the Deputy to conclude his effort next week.

Axelrod claims that Burk's threat came about in the course of an extremely contentious and argumentative meeting between Burk, and Washoe County Commissioner Pete Sferrazza and her that took place on February 13 in the Washoe County Commissioner's private meeting room. The activist says that Sferrazza convened the meeting as a tactic to gain Axelrod's agreement not to name Washoe County as a defendant in her lawsuit. As she had in the past, Axelrod once again charged Burk with lying and destroying election records to over up Washoe County election malfeasance. According to Axelrod, it was towards the end of the meeting when Sferrazza left the room to copy 3 pages of a document listing thousands of Washoe County voters as 'Unsure Voters' - something Burk claimed to have no knowledge of - that the Registrar issued his threat against her.

As Axelrod relates the incident, "Burk and I were left alone glowering across the table at each other. I looked at Burk and said to him, 'I know what you're up to. You don't care who gets elected. Democrat or Republican. As long as this county's corrupt old boy network stays in power!' To wit Burk replied his face contorted with anger, 'You're going to end up in the hospital.' And I said, 'Are you threatening me?'
Without hesitation Burk repeated 'You're going to end up in the hospital'. A second later Sferrazza came back into the room and I told him that Burk had threatened me by telling me that I was going to end up in the hospital. Laughably, Burk countered that he was only expressing "concern for my health because I was working so hard that I was sure to end up in the hospital." February 14, Axelrod reported Burk's threat and other wrong doing to Washoe County Assistant District Attorney Herb Kaplan who took no action but advised the activist to report the matter to law enforcement. Following the DA's advise Axelrod filed charges against Burk with the Sheriff's Dept.