Two right-wing political operatives, who launched a robocall campaign causing “severe anxiety and distress” for a New York voter and aimed to discourage Black voters in several states, have been ordered to pay a hefty fine, the New York State attorney general’s office said.
Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman were found liable in federal court last March for “transmitting false and threatening messages intended to discourage” Black voters in New York, according to a press release. Now, the pair – known for their political hoaxes – have been ordered to pay up to $1.25 million for their misconduct, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Tuesday.
In summer 2020, about 5,500 New Yorkers received robocalls falsely claiming that voting by mail would lead to their personal information being sent to law enforcement agencies, debt collectors and the government. The calls came as many states were encouraging mail-in voting due to the coronavirus pandemic.
One New York voter who received the threatening robocall suffered “severe anxiety and distress,” leading him to withdraw his voter registration, according to James’ press release.
The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation was forced to redirect significant resources to address the false claims made in the call after voters received the robocall.
“The right to vote is the cornerstone of our democracy, and it belongs to everyone. We will not allow anyone to threaten that right,” New York Attorney General James said in a written statement. “Wohl and Burkman orchestrated a depraved and disinformation-ridden campaign to intimidate Black voters in an attempt to sway the election in favor of their preferred candidate. Now they will pay up to $1.25 million to my office, the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, and the individuals who were harmed by their scheme. My office will always defend the right to vote.”
Wohl and Burkman agreed to a $1 million judgment to the state attorney general’s office, the coalition and individual plaintiffs under the agreement. If they fail to pay at least $105,000 by Dec. 31, and do not address the failure to pay within 30 days, the amount will increase to $1.25 million.
In May 2021, James filed a lawsuit against them after an investigation revealed they violated state and federal laws. The duo operated under their sham organization called “Project 1599.” And they orchestrated robocalls to harass Black communities with disinformation, including claims that mail-in voters would have their personal information disseminated to law enforcement, debt collectors and the government.
Meanwhile, the duo has faced criminal liability in Ohio and additional fines for robocall scamming in several states, including Michigan, Pennsylvania and Illinois. Burkman and Wohl pleaded guilty to telecommunications fraud in 2022 in Ohio, and a state judge ordered them to spend 500 hours registering low and middle-income Americans to vote.
The robocalls were reportedly voiced by a woman who identified herself as Tamika Taylor from a civil rights organization called The 1599 Project. Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor James Gutierrez noted in court that Breonna Taylor’s mother’s first name is also Tamika.
Breonna Taylor was fatally shot during a police raid in Louisville, Kentucky, in March 2020, sparking national protests and international outrage. Gutierrez said more than 6,400 robocalls were made to voters in predominantly Black neighborhoods in Cleveland and east of the city.
LawandCrime.com posted a sample of the hoax calls: “Hi, this is Tamika Taylor from Project 1599, the civil rights organization founded by Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl. Mail-in voting sounds great, but did you know that if you vote by mail, your personal information will be part of a public database that will be used by police departments to track down old warrants and be used by credit card companies to collect outstanding debts? The CDC is even pushing to use records for mail-in voting to track people for mandatory vaccines. Don’t be finessed into giving your private information to the man, stay safe and beware of vote by mail.”
In February James won a significant case against the National Rifle Association and its former CEO, Wayne LaPierre and landed a victory in the penalty phase of a civil fraud case against former President Donald Trump.
