New York Attorney General Letitia James has resolved the case with MAGA pranksters Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman over their robocall scheme aimed at suppressing Black Americans’ votes during the 2020 election. As part of their settlement, Wohl and Burkman have been instructed to pay a sum of “up to $1.25 million.”
In March 2023, U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero held Wohl and Burkman accountable for their actions. They were found liable for targeting Black voters and spreading false and threatening messages with the intent to discourage voting. James released a statement on Tuesday expressing her views on the matter.
The right to vote is the cornerstone of our democracy, and it belongs to everyone. We will not allow anyone to threaten that right. 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 allegedly conducted a robocall operation in multiple states, including Michigan and Ohio, where they also faced criminal charges. The calls specifically targeted Black communities and made false claims about the risks of voting by mail. The connection between Wohl and Burkman and the calls was evident as they were mentioned by name. According to Marrero’s ruling in October 2020, these calls reached approximately 85,000 individuals.
One example of a robocall script goes like this:
Hi, this is Tamika Taylor from Project 1599, the civil rights organization founded by Jack Burman [sic] 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 home safe and beware of vote by mail.
According to James, around 5,500 people in New York received the calls. She initially sought damages of approximately $2.75 million, which equates to $500 per call.
