The Wisconsin Supreme Court suspended James Troupis from the state's Judicial Conduct Advisory Committee Tuesday following his felony forgery conviction, the Wisconsin Examiner reported. The attorney for former President Donald Trump was implicated in a scheme to cast fake Electoral College votes in the 2020 election.
Troupis helped plan the false vote operation after his then-client lost to President Joe Biden. In March 2023, Troupis was reappointed to the committee court by the court despite the accusations, thanks to a conservative majority at the time.
The balance of the court was four to three, favoring conservative justices. Troupis' appointment fell along ideological lines, but that changed just after he was reappointed.
Justice Janet Protasiewicz joined the court and tipped the scales in favor of liberal justices, which gave weight to calls for his ouster. Troupis was supposed to serve a second three-year term on the committee but has been suspended.
In all, three surrogates for Trump were charged in connection with the scheme that sought to add electoral votes in favor of Trump despite his loss in Wisconsin. The plan was to send fake electors to cast their votes to keep Trump in the White House, CBS News reported.
Troupis, Kenneth Cheseboro, and Michael Roman were indicted on charges of one count each of felony forgery. The trio cooked up the plan in a Nov. 18, 2020, memo and were set to cast their votes on Dec. 14, 2020 along with the rest of the Electoral College.
The indictment points to Troupis as "the one who floated early on the idea of the electors voting on Dec. 14." They were convinced then-Vice President Mike Pence would certify the state election on Jan. 6, 2021, in favor of Trump.
For their alleged crime, the men could face up to $10,000 in fines and six years in prison each if convicted. They will make their initial appearance on Sept. 19 in front of the Dane County Circuit Court.
"The criminal complaint in this case alleges that the defendants were part of a conspiracy to present a certificate of purported electoral votes from individuals who were not Wisconsin's duly appointed electors," a statement from Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul explained. "The Wisconsin Department of Justice is committed to protecting the integrity of our electoral process."
Because of the unprecedented nature of the 2020 presidential election, many believed something nefarious had taken place. This led to efforts in several other states to overturn the results that turned into ensuing indictments.
So far, these cases have cropped up in Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and Arizona for others seeking to sway the outcome. Trump was slapped with 10 charges in Fulton County, Georgia, in a case related to his alleged efforts to coax officials to award the state to him.
Another federal case in Washington, D.C., is also on the horizon for Trump, with similar accusations that he was trying to block the peaceful transfer of power to the next president. Trump has continued to plead not guilty to all charges.
The others involved in the Wisconsin scheme face additional charges as well. Cheseboro is embroiled in a Georgia racketeering case, while Roman has been roped into the Fulton County case.
These alleged crimes are reprehensible if they occurred, and the actors in the schemes should face the consequences. However, it's not difficult for anyone who had questions about the 2020 election to see why they did what they did.
