Federal prosecutors charged six people in California, Kansas and Louisiana in separate cases involving alleged identity fraud, illegal voting and fraudulent voter registration. One California defendant was arrested last week, a Kansas defendant was scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 14, 2026, and all six remain presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
California petition allegations
In California, James Brass, 47, also known as “Lord,” of Victorville, was arrested after a federal grand jury charged him and two petition circulators, Courtney Price, 49, of Jacksonville, Florida, and Jateisha Herron, 33, of Boron, California. The indictment alleges that from February to August they used registered voters’ stolen identities to obtain fraudulent signatures on ballot initiative petitions, including by paying people on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles to copy voter information and sign other people’s names.
All three were charged with conspiracy to commit identity fraud in furtherance of a state felony, while Brass and Price also face an identity-fraud count. Prosecutors allege Brass and Herron falsely declared under penalty of perjury that they had witnessed the registered voters sign, then submitted the petitions to coordinators. Brass allegedly received approximately $41,600 from coordinators working with one petition management company. Each defendant faces up to five years in prison on each count if convicted.
Kansas and Louisiana cases
In Kansas, a Wichita federal grand jury charged Mariana Alexandra Dewey, 24, a Peruvian national and permanent U.S. resident, with falsely claiming citizenship, fraudulent election conduct and voting by an alien in a federal election. Prosecutors allege that in November 2024 she represented herself as a U.S. citizen to register and then cast a ballot covering federal, state and local contests, including races for president, vice president, Senate and House of Representatives.
In Louisiana, Bridget Johnson, 53, of Cotton Valley, was charged with fraudulent voter registration and voting by an alien, while Michael Wedderburn, 52, of Jamaica, was charged with voting by an alien. Johnson, a 2024 candidate for Cotton Valley mayor, allegedly submitted a voter registration application in Wedderburn’s name on July 14, 2024, falsely stating that he was a U.S. citizen. Wedderburn allegedly voted in the Nov. 5, 2024, election for a federal office and in the mayoral race. If convicted, Johnson faces up to five years in prison, and Wedderburn faces up to one year plus additional financial penalties.