Board says county had no influence in elections case

SANDPOINT - Bonner County commissioners said on Friday that alleged election improprieties were first brought to them, but insisted no county officials exerted any influence in the matter.

Commission Chairman Cary Kelly released a statement outlining the origins of the investigation which produced felony criminal charges against Clerk Ann Dutson-Sater and Deputy Clerk Charlie Wurm.

Kelly said the board received a complaint in January which questioned the collection of signatures by Thomas Bokowy, who was involved with the attempted recall of Steve Youngdahl, chairman of the Lake Pend Oreille School District's board of trustees.

The commission referred the matter to the Bonner County Prosecutor's Office. After a preliminary investigation by the prosecutor here, the board referred it to the Kootenai County Prosecutor's Office on Jan. 28.

"Since that time, the entire matter has been handled by the Kootenai County Prosecutor and Sheriff's Office with absolutely no influence from any Bonner County officials," Kelly said in the statement.

The felony criminal charges emerged earlier this week, but remain filed under seal until Dutson-Sater and Wurm make initial court appearances. They are free on their own recognizance while their cases are pending.

Dutson-Sater said she believes the charges are being brought because she mistakenly allowed Bokowy to sign off on the petitions without realizing he wasn't the person who gathered all the signatures.

The recall election was never held because of an unrelated technicality.

The criminal charges surfaced in the run-up to the Nov. 4 general election.

"With a general election less than two months away, the recent charges against the Bonner County Clerk could raise questions as to the timing - something over which no one in Bonner County had any control," Kelly said.

Dutson-Sater, an incumbent Democrat, is being challenged in the general election by Michael Rosedale, a Republican.