On August 12, The Gateway Pundit’s Patty McMurray reported that Michigan attorney Kevin Kijewski filed a verified complaint in the Michigan Court of Claims on behalf of Bridgewater Township Clerk Michelle McQueer.
Kijewski, a former Republican candidate for Michigan Attorney General, first gained statewide attention for successfully defending Clifford Frost, one of the Republican alternate electors targeted by Attorney General Dana Nessel. After securing the dismissal of the charges against Frost, Kijewski was inspired to seek the AG nomination, running on a platform to end partisan lawfare and restore the rule of law.
Here is a screenshot of Michelle McQueer’s lawsuit against Jocelyn Benson.
The lawsuit challenged Rule R 168.48, issued under Benson’s authority, which requires clerks to delete electronic poll book software and all associated files within seven days after an election is certified.
Could Benson’s requirement to willfully destroy election documents in advance of the 22-month federal and state preservation statute put clerks in jeopardy of being criminally charged?
Federal law states:
-52 U.S.C. § 20701 requires every “officer of election” to retain and preserve all records relating to voting in federal elections for 22 months.
-52 U.S.C. § 20702 makes it a federal crime for any person to willfully destroy, conceal, or alter those records.
Penalty: up to a $1,000 fine, up to one year in prison, or both.
The complaint argues the rule collides with federal statute (52 U.S.C. § 20701), which requires election officers to preserve all records relating to acts of voting in federal elections for 22 months. Willful destruction of those records is a federal crime. Michigan law (MCL 168.811) similarly prohibits the destruction of election returns, poll lists, and federal-office ballots before the same 22-month period expires.
