The Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation in California as it continues its effort to prove that as many as 20,000 noncitizens are on the state’s voter rolls, a U.S. official confirmed to NBC News Thursday.
\n\nThe official said that the DOJ has issued federal grand jury subpoenas to local election officials across the state, though it’s unclear how many subpoenas were sent out and exactly who received them.
\n\nThe New York Times first reported the new subpoenas.
\n\nIn response to an inquiry from NBC News on Thursday, the Justice Department declined to comment on “leaks about alleged grand jury subpoenas,” but added that federal courts have said voting unlawfully results in criminal exposure.
\n\nThe U.S. official told NBC News that receiving a subpoena doesn’t mean that person is necessarily a target, just that they may have information relevant to the investigation. The official added that the Justice Department rarely subpoenas individuals it intends to charge with a crime.
\n\nThe new subpoenas follow a federal judge’s ruling Wednesday to deny the Trump administration’s request to segregate 20,000 mail-in ballots from alleged noncitizens in California, calling into question the accuracy of the administration’s process to identify such individuals.
\n\nLos Angeles…
Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/