WASHINGTON, DC — A judge on May 6 ruled that the Department of Justice can keep possession of 2020 election ballots seized during an FBI search in January, a victory for President Donald Trump's administration as it pursues the president's false claims of widespread voter fraud.
Atlanta-based U.S. District Judge J.P. Boulee rejected Fulton County’s request for the return of original copies of the seized material. Lawyers for the county had argued that the FBI’s search of the county's election hub relied on faulty and discredited evidence and violated protections under the U.S. Constitution.
A spokesperson for Fulton County did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
The ruling is a rare court victory for the Justice Department in investigations that Trump has demanded. It will allow the FBI to keep possession of more than 600 boxes of 2020 ballots as it pursues a criminal investigation into whether election records were not properly retained or whether residents in Fulton County, which includes most of Atlanta, were defrauded out of a fair election.
But the investigation still faces significant obstacles. DOJ lawyers have not identified any individual targets of the probe and have not disputed claims that the statute of limitations appears to have expired on both crimes prosecutors have said they are investigating.
