The Nevada Supreme Court unanimously revived a criminal case against President Donald Trump's allies who falsely claimed to be presidential electors to help subvert the results of the 2020 election.
The justices ruled 6-0 that state Attorney General Aaron Ford had properly filed the forgery case in Las Vegas, which overruled a decision by a lower court that found the charges should have been brought in Carson City, where the pro-Trump fake electors signed the phony documents, reported Politico.
The decision came days after the president pardoned dozens of his allies – including all six of the defendants whose charges were brought back to life by the court – for any potential crimes related to the 2020 election, but his pardon power does not cover crimes charged at the state level.
The state’s GOP chairman Michael McDonald, vice chair Jim Hindle and the state’s Republican National Committeeman Jim DeGraffenreid are among the six facing forgery charges, which carry a maximum five-year penalty if convicted.
Dozens of Republican activists in seven swing states signed on to the fake electors scheme pushed by the Trump campaign after his loss to Joe Biden.
The campaign and Republican Party leaders told the fake electors their electoral votes would be counted if Trump won his court challenges in their states, but Trump advisers were planning to use the false certificates to pressure then-Vice President Mike Pence not to certify the results when Congress met Jan. 6, 2021, to count ballots.
