Still no comment on statement
Published 12:00 am Monday, July 18, 2005
GREENSBORO-Alabama Sen. Bobby Singleton and Hale County Circuit Clerk Gay Nell Tinker are still reviewing allegations from Lakeisha Monet Williams. When contacted both parties said they were still looking through the allegations and consulting with attorney’s before releasing a response to the charges.
The allegations surfaced in early July when Williams released a statement through the Democracy Defense League and filed charges with the Hale County Sheriff’s Department alleging Singleton, Tinker and Shirley Pickens all participated in an act of voter fraud geared around an absentee ballot.
Williams said Tinker and Pickens came to her house and asked her if she wanted to vote absentee. Williams said yes and filled out the paper work. Williams said she never received anything after that so she went out to vote and the poll workers told her she had already voted absentee. In the end Williams had to vote a provisional ballot.
In Williams’ statement she said the visit occurred on April 26 or 27 around 5:45 p.m.
Williams said she was told she would receive her absentee ballot in the mail the following Saturday (April 30). However, the ballot never came.
Williams said when Election Day came on May 3 she headed to the polls at the Greensboro National Guard Armory to cast her vote, but when the poll worker looked her name up she was told she had already voted absentee.
She voted a provisional ballot that was never counted. A week later Williams says she received a letter from the Hale County Board of Registrars informing her that the ballot would not be counted because an absentee ballot had been received and counted in the Absentee Ballot Managers Office. Williams said she then spoke to Tammy Taylor who referred her to the Probate Judges Office who advised her to file a report with the Sheriff’s Office. Williams filed the report on May 13.
Williams said she was then contacted by Pickens and Singleton several times following the event.
She said the issue had quieted down until the beginning of June when Singleton contacted her again saying he had a woman from the Attorney General’s office he wanted her to talk to.
Williams stated “By this time I had figured out that Bobby Singleton was trying to railroad me to help his wife (Tinker) and his aunt (Pickens) and himself. Bobby said we needed to set up a time and place for the meeting, I told him okay and he said he would get back to me.”
Williams said she was again contacted by Singleton on June 11, but did not answer the phone because she was angry with him.