The first conviction in the drawn-out election interference case in Arizona has been reached as a GOP activist pleaded guilty to charges that she lied about Donald Trump winning the state in the 2020 presidential election.
Though limited details were revealed in the August 6 announcement from Richie Taylor, spokesperson for the Grand Canyon State’s office for the attorney general, Loraine Pellegrino has admitted to filing a false document that indicated the GOP presidential candidate had claimed victory in the state.
Although her plea has yet to be reflected in court documents, even as she has received a sentence of unsupervised probation, Pellegrino’s concession to the misdemeanor charge allowed her to evade the nine felonies she previously faced. The defendant’s attorney, Joshua Kolsrud, explained her plea decision as one which epitomizes her intention to “move forward” from the case.
He added that his client acknowledged “full responsibility” for her role in the scheme, pointing out that she was “not as culpable” in the violations compared to other defendants.
Pellegrino is one of 18 individuals who were charged in the case. A total of 11 Republicans signed a document which identified themselves as “duly elected and qualified” electors who said that Trump had won the most votes in Arizona in 2020. In reality, Biden claimed victory by more than 10,000 votes.
The news of Pellegrino’s plea comes after Jenna Ellis—a fellow defendant and former attorney for Trump—reached a cooperation agreement with prosecutors in exchange for having charges against her dropped. The case comes from federal prosecutors in Arizona, who released a felony indictment in April.
11 Republicans were formally charged on charges related to forgery, fraud, and conspiracy along with five attorneys with ties to Trump and two of his former aides. Similar charges have been filed by prosecutors in Georgia, Nevada, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
Although the former president is listed as an unindicted co-conspirator, his lawyer Rudy Giuliani and chief of staff Mark Meadows remain on the hook for charges for which they have pleaded not guilty.
