Perry County Commission chairman Albert Turner, Jr.'s new attorney Robert Turner, Sr. has filed a motion to dismiss the voter fraud charges against his client.
Robert Turner, Sr. said in the motion Thursday that Albert Turner, Jr. is being prosecuted for exercising his constitutional rights and that the indictment against him "is unconstitutionally vague in that it does not give the defendant specific conduct that is unlawful."
Robert Turner, Sr. is the father of Robert Turner, Jr., the District Attorney of the Fourth Judicial Circuit. Alabama's Fourth Judicial Circuit includes Bibb, Dallas, Hale, Perry and Wilcox Counties.
Turner's arraignment is scheduled for 9 a.m. February 23 at the Perry County Courthouse.
According to the indictment, Albert Turner, Jr. was allegedly in possession of multiple absentee ballots and allegedly deposited multiple election ballots into a voting machine during the 2022 primary elections.
Albert Turner called the indictment "bogus" last month after the charges were announced in a press release by former Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill and Alabama's former Fourth Judicial Circuit District Attorney Michael Jackson on January 11 in their final days in office.
According to Merrill's and Jackson's press release, Turner was indicted for allegedly voting multiple times and inserting multiple completed ballots into the tabulator at a polling location in Perry County in the May primary. Turner was also indicted for allegedly ballot harvesting during the November general election.
Jackson stated at a press conference announcing the indictment that he had "heard the cry from the citizens and the people running for office to clean up the elections in the Black Belt."
Robert Turner, Jr. defeated Jackson with 54% of the vote in the primary. According to the Selma Times-Journal, Turner had 9,178 votes compared to 7,770 for Jackson. Jackson had served as Alabama's Fourth Judicial Circuit District Attorney since 2004, according to the Times-Journal. Robert Turner, Jr. is a cousin of Albert Turner, Jr.
To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email caleb.taylor@1819News.com.
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