Hidalgo County grand jury to hire forensic analyst for voting machines

Posted: Thursday,
March 27, 2014 7:30 pm
Jacob Fischler


EDINBURG — An Hidalgo County grand jury Thursday took a step toward investigating possible criminal tampering with voting machines in the recent Democratic primary, District Attorney Rene Guerra said.

The grand jury signed an order to hire a forensic analyst to inspect the voting machines used during early voting in late February and Election Day on March 4.

The order is “requesting that experts be hired to look at the machines and determine if they were properly functioning during the primary election,” Guerra said.

“I think it’s necessary and I think we can do it real quick-like,” he added.

The grand jurors turned in the order to the Hidalgo County District Clerk’s Office, Guerra said, though a chief administrator in that office said she could not locate it just before 5 p.m. Thursday. The order will be given to 430th state District Court Judge Israel Ramon, who was unavailable Thursday afternoon.
Guerra hopes to meet with Ramon and 398th state District Court Judge Aida Salinas Flores on Friday morning to discuss whom the courts could hire, he said.

Last week, Salinas Flores granted a request from Guerra’s office to impound the machines.

The order comes two days after Hidalgo County commissioners decided to butt out of the investigation into potential malfunctioning or tampering with the voting machines.
Six candidates who lost their primary races filed election challenges this week, alleging the elections were corrupted.
One of those candidates lauded the grand jury’s decision Thursday as necessary for voter confidence.

“Absolutely it’s a big deal,” said Paul Vazaldua, who ran for justice of the peace in Precinct 2 Place 2. “The focus of this is to give the voters piece of mind, to give the voters piece of mind that we have an election process that’s solid and full of integrity. And I think the only way we can do that is through a forensic analyst.”

http://www.themonitor.com/news/local...7a43b2370.html