The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) warned Los Angeles County on Oct. 16 that officials could face prosecution for abetting a federal crime if they count ballots submitted by suspected noncitizens.
In a letter addressed to the Los Angeles County Counsel’s office, acting U.S. Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter said officials could risk “becoming aiders and abettors to a federal crime” if they knowingly count ballots from individuals whom federal agencies have identified as noncitizens.
“The legal consequences for either facilitating or ignoring a federal crime are significant. Noncitizens voting in a federal election is a federal crime—and knowingly facilitating such conduct is equally unlawful,” McCotter wrote.
The letter was also copied to California Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder Dean Logan.
McCotter said the DOJ did not expect county officials to adjudicate anyone’s immigration status, but asked the county to temporarily set aside ballots when there are credible concerns about the voters’ eligibility.
“The department has not requested a purge, cancellation of registrations, or any programmatic action. We requested only temporary ballot segregation pending citizenship verification,” he added.
President Donald Trump shared the letter on Truth Social with a caption that reads: “They will all go to jail for a long period of time!!!”
In response to the letter, Logan said his office is focused on conducting a fair and secure election while noting that election day is 18 days away.
“The U.S. Department of Justice has chosen to litigate their unverified assertions of voting eligibility. At this point, it is best for this to be addressed in court,” he said in a statement.
The Epoch Times has reached out to the Los Angeles County Counsel’s office for comment but has not received a response by publication time.
The letter followed a DOJ lawsuit filed against California on Oct. 15 seeking to block the counting of mail-in ballots from individuals suspected by the federal government of being noncitizens. The department alleged that more than 20,000 people identified as likely noncitizens were registered to vote in the state.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli in Los Angeles said on Oct. 15 that the DOJ gave the state 48 hours to review the names of the suspected noncitizens registered to vote who were mailed live ballots and determine whether citizens were on the list.
The federal government asked that if California was not able to independently confirm the citizenship of the voters registered, the state should set aside ballots received until citizenship could be confirmed.
Esayli said that California has refused to comply.
Los Angeles County said on Oct. 16 that it could not comply with the DOJ’s demand because the department has not provided evidence, sources, or methodology to establish that the individuals identified in its records were ineligible to vote.
“We cannot withhold or refuse to count ballots based solely on unverified allegations, nor can we disregard the legal requirements governing our election—and we certainly have no authority to act on records that are outside of our jurisdiction,” the county said in an Oct. 15 statement posted on X.
McCotter said in his letter on Oct. 16 that the department identified suspected noncitizens using internal immigration records, data matching, and supervisory verification procedures.
Jill McLaughlin and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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