MSNBC/REUTERS on lawsuit to terminate Sequoia

[Land Shark]

Thanks firenze777 for finding this link.

looks like 6 good paragraphs followed by 6 paragraphs of official drivel.

<http://famulus.msnbc.com/famulusgen/reuters04-12-165037.asp?t=renew&vts=41220051903>

The lawsuit, the Sequoia contract to be terminated, and the study showing election irregularities in Snohomish county are all at:
www.votersunite.org

[Wilms]

1. Six out of twelve is batting .500

Let them have their moment to babble nervously!

But, wow, that piece came on strong. No tin-foil hat charges there.

Great stuff, Jaws!

[Land Shark]

2. I assure you they have a copy of the lawsuit

early on they said they 'hadn't seen' a copy of the lawsuit, now they have seen it so they're saying they 'haven't been served'.

we'll serve them Wednesday then, with the filed complaint.

[Wilms]

3. I've no doubt.

That's why they babble nervously.

Next, they may babble nervously some more and say they haven't studied the complaint.

I grinned through the entire read.

Those last six paragraphs had a "deer in the headlight" quality about them.

I felt they were 'outed'.


""We have had no reason to be concerned," Terwilliger said, adding that the county had been using the machines since 2002."


Is he speaking for a majority of Washingtonians, here?


And this one...


"Alfie Charles, a spokesman for Sequoia, said the underlying code, or software blueprint, for the company's voting machines was not disclosed because it is considered a trade secret and its release could compromise security.""


Hmmm. Trade Secrets? Compromise Security? And "we have no reason to be concerned"?


Time to revise your batting average. ;)

[Land Shark]

4. in the Sept. primary, 65 machines failed, and the Auditor

considered that number 'unacceptably high'. see
<http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002078349_paul01.html>
Neither the county nor Sequoia is "willing to live with that rate of failure," Terwilliger said.

then, in the 2004 general election, the audit log records show that more than 80 machines had to be recalibrated for screen problems, and numerous other machines froze up or otherwise failed.

I guess they are willing to live with 'that rate of failure' since the Auditor's quote above is that the machines are doing fine...

[Wilms]

5. Next, Terwilliger will say...

"Humminna, humminna...", etc.

Thanks for pointing to the gun from which all that smoke and hot air emanated.

[keepthemhonest]

6. Land Shark you are fantastic

I can just imagine if we did this all around the country, then people would hear about the problems with our election system. I loved your idea the minute I heard it. I was looking forward to meeting you on the conference and hearing what you had to say, sorry you could not make it.Are there more lawyers out there like yourself that would be willing to do the same thing. I would be willing to do it as a citizen here in Georgia ,but we would need lawyers to file would'nt we?

I am hoping that there are more people out there like you with brilliant ideas to share. What did you think about the Bradblog idea, did you hear about that? I loved that one as well.

Congrats on making MSM, I hope it catches on!

[Land Shark]

21. there can be no intellectual property in ideas, so steal 'em

copycat lawyers adapting to own jurisdictions welcome.

[keepthemhonest]

7. just recommende for greatest thread n/t

[Andy_Stephenson]

8. I talked about your suit yesterday in

the Democrats.com blog call.

Glad the MSM is finally taking notice.

[keepthemhonest]

9. Hey there

would you mind voting for greatest thread if you have not already?

[meganmonkey]

10. Excellent!

Well, as good as can be expected, anyway ;)

[keepthemhonest]

11. I am so excited about this too.

This is very good for the movement.

It just made greatest page, thanks for nominating!

[meganmonkey]

13. No problem

I picked the right week to start delving into this forum again! There is a ton of great stuff going on

:woohoo:

[keepthemhonest]

14. yeah I am just getting back into the swing of things again as well

good to see you again.Escpeacially with good news circulating.

[Peace Patriot]

12. Congratulations, Land Shark! Way to go!

Do you know who Alfie Charles is (was)? (--Sequoia spokesman quoted in the article.) He is the former assistant Sec of State in Calif under Bill Jones, who authorized the purchase of these crappy, crime-inviting machines for Calif.

The whole electronic voting thing is riddled with conflicts of interest, revolving door employment and other corruption. These companies have not only destroyed our right to vote, they are corrupting everyone and everything they touch and are destroying the very idea of public service.

The following Sequoia web page puffery gets funnier (and more mind-blowing) the further down you read. The first paragraphs document Alfie Charlies' outrageous conflict of interest in public office (going to work for Sequoia after promoting their machines to dozens of Calif counties and stuffing multi-millions of public dollars into their pockets). I didn't know about Kathryn Ferguson, former Santa Clara County Registrar, now working for Sequoia. (--one of the 14 DRE-troubled Calif counties that Kevin Shelley decertified).

http://www.sequoiavote.com/mediadetail.php?id=55

"Assistant Secretary of State Joins Sequoia Voting Systems, the Oakland-Based Provider of Touch Screen Voting Systems

"2002-08-22

"Alfred J. Charles will help Sequoia's clients design and execute successful voter education programs as the company's Director of Public Affairs.

"OAKLAND, Calif., Aug. 22, 2002.

"One of California's top election officials is departing the Secretary of State's office to join Oakland-based Sequoia Voting Systems, the nation's most experienced provider of touch screen voting machines.

"Alfred J. Charles, California's Assistant Secretary of State for Communications and eGovernment, will become Sequoia's Director of Public Affairs on Sept. 9.

""We are very pleased that a senior advisor to Secretary of State Bill Jones will be joining our team," said Peter Cosgrove, Sequoia's president and chief executive officer. "Alfie not only has unparalleled expertise in California election law, but in supervising successful voter education and outreach programs. His insights and expertise will prove quite valuable to Sequoia's current and future clients across California."

"Charles joins Sequoia following a seven-year career with the Secretary of State's office in which he chaired the California Internet Voting Task Force and drafted California's digital signature regulations. He also counseled Secretary of State Bill Jones on a number of election policy issues, including voter access issues involving computers and the viability of Internet voting.

""It is apparent that Internet voting is a technology whose time has not come," Charles said. "For large jurisdictions needing to upgrade their voting equipment, touch screen voting clearly represents the easiest, most reliable and unambiguous method of conducting elections today and for the foreseeable future. Sequoia has not only gained more experience than any other company in touch screen technology, but, by all accounts, has an unrivalled history of working with counties to conduct successful elections with state-of-the-art technology. That's a track record I can be proud of and I look forward to helping Sequoia and its customers continue to improve their voting systems."

"Before joining the Secretary of State's office in 1995, Charles honed his voter outreach skills by managing several high-profile political campaigns, including the landmark Three Strikes and You're Out initiative, which he supervised while working as an account manager for Cavalier & Associates, a Sacramento-based public relations firm. He also coordinated California media activities for Arizona Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign in 2000.

"Charles earned a Bachelor of Science degree from California State University, Sacramento, where he majored in government and minored in history and philosophy. Charles lives in Elk Grove with his wife, Kristin, and their children.

"Charles is the second high-ranking public official Sequoia has added to its election management team hired during the past year. Last summer, the company hired Santa Clara County's Registrar Kathryn Ferguson as its Vice President of Governmental Relations and Public Affairs. Ferguson was previously Registrar of Clark County (Las Vegas), Nevada, from 1993 to 1999; and Bexar County (San Antonio), Texas, from 1991 to 1993. With a computer science background, she has also served on numerous voting reform committees and panels, including the California Secretary of State's Voting System Certification Advisory Panel. Ferguson was the chairman of The Election Center's Voting Technology Committee at its inception in early 1999.

"A pioneer in voting reform, Ferguson initiated and managed Clark County's 1994 conversion from punch cards to full face electronic voting machines, fully six years before Florida's voting problems in the 2000 presidential election highlighted the need for electronic voting systems across the country. The electronic early voting program she put into place there was the first of its kind and has become a national model for electronic early voting programs. More of Clark County's voters now vote early than vote on Election Day, and the county's absentee voting numbers have held steady rather than increasing exponentially like California's have done.

"Oakland, California-based Sequoia is the nation's most experienced provider of Direct Record Electronic (DRE) technology, with an installed base of more than 35,000 full face and touch screen voting machines in 16 states, including Riverside County, California and Palm Beach, Pinellas, Hillsborough and Indian River counties in Florida.

"Sequoia Voting Systems is a subsidiary of Hampshire, England-based De La Rue, a leading worldwide provider of tamperproof government documents and secure cash processing technologies. De La Rue's accurate cash-counting mechanisms are used by one fifth of the world's ATMs and more than 2,000 financial institutions in 60 countries rely on De La Rue to secure their transactions. De La Rue applies the same commitment to accuracy and integrity to the election business through Sequoia Voting Systems. The companies invite you to visit their respective websites at www.sequoiavote.com or www.delarue.com

"Media Contact:

"Alfie Charles
Public Affairs Director
office:916-683-4525
cell: 916-719-9729"

-------

He seems to be proud of himself. Ye gods. These people are UNBELIEVABLE!

[FogerRox]

18. We have a similar suit in nj--from 2004-still pending

NOw we are considering an injunction to delay a contract with Sequoia, that My county Essex has already signed.

Of course the events in WAshington put us in good company---

fight fight win win

[understandinglife]

15. Excellent. And, good it's on the 'greatest' page where it belongs (nt)

www.missionnotaccomplished.us (a day to reflect on the crimes against humanity being caused by those who stole America's national election in 2000 and 2004)

[MissWaverly]

16. Thanks for posting this - Land Shark

That's the same machine that kept defaulting to GWB here in Baltimore City, MD-the AVC Advantage Model 315 from Sequoia, the rest of the Maryland had Diebold. I hope that there's still forensic evidence of fraud left inside.

PS I loved the photo on another thread of the shark sneaking up
on the computer techie! I assume that was your photo!

[Land Shark]

19. i think gary beckwith found that photo of the shark! n/t

[MelissaB]

17. Here is the article! Yippeeeeee!! This is GREAT!

Washington state suit wants vote machines opened

By Reed Stevenson

SEATTLE, April 12 — An electronic voting machine maker is battling a voter rights advocate in Washington state who wants to force the company to reveal the machines' software blueprint.

Paul Lehto, an Everett, Washington, lawyer has filed suit against Sequoia Voting Systems Inc., a privately held company based in Oakland, California, and Snohomish County, where his practice is located, arguing Sequoia's contract should be voided.

The lawsuit, filed last week in King County Superior Court, pits the right of a company to guard proprietary information against the public's need to know how elections are tabulated, Lehto said.

''These are entities that are providing the most central governmental function that we have, the counting of the vote,'' Lehto said Tuesday. ''If they are not only controlling that process but purporting to own it, then that is a serious problem.''

Lehto said he began to question the reliability of Snohomish County's voting system during Washington state's 2004 governor's race, which initially gave Republican Dino Rossi a lead over Democrat Christine Gregoire.

That outcome was reversed after several recounts, putting Gregoire into the governor's seat vacated by Democrat Gary Locke.

Snohomish County auditor Bob Terwilliger said that there were no issues with the Sequoia touch-screen systems that the county used last year.

''We have had no reason to be concerned,'' Terwilliger said, adding that the county had been using the machines since 2002.

Out of 352,000 registered voters in Snohomish County, 200,000 voted by mail and 96,200 voted in polling locations using Sequoia's electronic voting machines.

Alfie Charles, a spokesman for Sequoia, said the underlying code, or software blueprint, for the company's voting machines was not disclosed because it is considered a trade secret and its release could compromise security.

''Electronic voting (machines) performed extremely well. ... They provided certainty in ballot results in places where they haven't had it in the past,'' Charles said.

Charles and Terwilliger said that they had not yet been served with the lawsuit.

Link: http://famulus.msnbc.com/famulusgen/reuters04-12-165037.asp?t=renew&vts=41220051903

[Land Shark]

20. only thing is, we've asked for the code. politely. they refused.

now we seek to declare the contract void. the 'relief requested' doesn't expressly include obtaining the code, in part because even the code was flawless, there is still the problem of secrecy and the very structure of the system implemented, and its implementation by contract

[Wilms]

22. Brad wrote a bit.

http://www.bradblog.com/archives/00001319.htm

[kster]

23. Kick.............n/t

[Melissa G]

24. kick for Jaws!

[tommcintyre]

25. Kick for a MSM breakout! n/t

[Nothing Without Hope]

26. Yes, the initial paragraphs did not pull any punches!

       ....The lawsuit, filed last week in King County Superior Court, pits the right of a company to guard proprietary information against the public's need to know how elections are tabulated, Lehto said.

       ''These are entities that are providing the most central governmental function that we have, the counting of the vote,'' Lehto said Tuesday. ''If they are not only controlling that process but purporting to own it, then that is a serious problem.'' ....

Yes, that just about says it all. And I'm remembering how Athan Gibbs' TruVote voting system didn't have ANY of these problems - but of course he had that so-unfortunate, quite suspicious "accident" (fatal, of course) when he was beginning to market them 8 months before the 2004 election.

For more about the Athan Gibbs story - see here:
http://www.commonground.ca/iss/0410159/cg159_USvote.shtml

and a number of mentions and links in this recent DU thread:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x355044

I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO SEE ATHAN GIBBS NAME AND STORY ASSOCIATED WITH EFFORTS TO ACHIEVE VOTER-VERIFIED, FRAUD-RESISTANT VOTING.

[Land Shark]

27. Attorney general served Wednesday, Sequoia and Snohomish

to be served today.

modifying the quote of lehto above and adding a sentence to it;

''These are PRIVATE entities that are providing the most central governmental function that we have, the counting of the vote,'' Lehto said Tuesday. ''If they are not only controlling that process but purporting to own it, then that is a serious problem. If another country made a 'modest proposal' to operate our elections for the purpose of counting votes in secret, we would immediately recognize this move for what it is; a takeover of democracy. Because our democracy is based on checks and balances, anyone that puts themselves (no matter how trustworthy they may or may not seem) in the position of counting votes without outside scrutiny has created at the very least the appearance of corruption as well as a huge opportunity for nearly undetectable *actual* corruption of democracy."

[keepthemhonest]

28. Tom McIntire

made a Media blaster and put this article and the Miami herald article on it and some other stuff. so everyone do the mediablaster thing. Get the word out to the media while we have somehting fresh and hot to cover!