ORLANDO, Fla. — One of the three Central Florida people charged with election fraud by Gov. DeSantis’ election security office last year has lost her appeal and will go to trial, court documents showed.
Michelle Stribling faces two counts related to voting in the 2020 election. Stribling was convicted of second-degree murder in 1993, which made her ineligible to vote.
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She registered to vote at a church in 2019, believing her rights had been restored by Amendment 4, which gave most convicted felons the right to vote. The amendment made an exception for people convicted of murder and sex crimes.
Stribling told investigators she could not read or write very well.
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Stribling’s attorney initially asked a judge to dismiss her case because the state lacked jurisdiction, which followed a pattern established by some of the other defendants accused in the governor’s round-up.
However, the governor signed a new law giving his administration jurisdiction over election crimes cases, which caused a judge to dismiss the attorney’s motion. The attorney appealed the decision to the Sixth District Court of Appeals.
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In an order dated August 11, a three-judge panel denied that appeal. The judges gave no reasoning for their ruling.
“They didn’t say it was denied on facts,” Stribling’s attorney, Roger Weeden said, referring to the order as strange. “They didn’t say it was denied on the law. They didn’t say it was denied on the procedure.”
Weeden said he had never seen a one-sentence order in a situation like this and theorized the judges didn’t want to tip their hand as the court considered an appeal by the state on the dismissal of the case against Peter Washington, another of the Central Florida defendants.
Stribling’s trial is scheduled to start on Sept. 11. To be convicted, the state must prove she not only registered and voted illegally, but also knew her actions were wrong.
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