Tulsa World
Friday, August 19, 1983
Draper, Fitzgibbon Convicted of Vote Fraud Charges
By Rob Martindale
Of the World Staff
MUSKOGEE – A federal court jury late Thursday found Dan Draper, the powerful speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, and Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon guilty of charges they conspired to steal a 1982 election for Draper’s father.
Draper, 43, was found guilty of one conspiracy count and 10 charges that he mailed bogus absentee ballots in his father’s House District 86 election bid.
Fitzgibbon was found guilty of conspiracy and eight counts of mailing falsified ballots in the election in which Draper’s father was defeated.
Fitzgibbon was found innocent on one mail fraud charge because the government failed to enter into evidence a postmarked envelope containing one of the questionable ballots, authorities said.
U.S. District Judge Frank Seay earlier had taken under advisement a defense motion for a directed verdict of acquittal. Asked after the verdict was rendered whether he could still order an acquittal in the case, Seay said, “Why don’t we wait and see.” He would not comment further.
Draper and Fitzgibbon angrily denied before the trial that they were involved in a bogus vote mill at a country grocery in Adair County.
Draper left the Muskogee courthouse Thursday night still proclaiming that he is innocent.
“I’m not guilty of anything,” said Draper, adding that he would have no further comment.
Fitzgibbon left a few minutes later and had no comment on the jury’s verdict.
House District 86 includes all of Adair County and parts of Delaware and Mayes counties.
The district was realigned by the Legislature in 1981 and opponents of Draper claimed the speaker railroaded the remapping through so his father could make the race.
The district was extended to the south so it would include Colcord, a Delaware County community of 528 and home of the elder Draper.
The realignment allowed the elder Draper to run for the state House, but it lead to the downfall of Speaker Draper.
Draper’s testimony before the U.S. District Court jury may have lead to his own undoing.
The government’s case had gotten off to a shaky start last week when key witness Barney Girdner Jr. said he had no knowledge that Draper was involved in any wrongdoing.
On Monday, the government’s case was revived when a witness put Draper in the back room of the Girdner’s grocery store where ballots were allegedly voted and notarized improperly.
When Draper took the witness stand on Wednesday there had been no testimony he took ballots from the store and mailed them to Adair County Election Board.
Draper told the jurors that he had taken ballots from the store and mailed them three days before the Sept 21 runoff election. Draper, however, told the jury he thought the ballots had been properly notarized and marked in the presence of the voters.
The absentee ballots mailed by Draper on Sept. 18 were part of the evidence presented to the jury.
People whose signatures were on the questionable ballots took the witness stand and said they had never voted in the election.
The jury, which reached its verdicts after nearly seven hours of deliberations, also had possession of ballots that were notarized at a rural school out of the presence of voters.
Cave Springs School Superintendent Don Patrick testified Monday that Fitzgibbon requested that the ballots be notarized by a school secretary.
After a federal grand jury issued a 20-count indictment against them in June, Democrats Draper and Fitzgibbon said the accusations were politically motivated because U.S. Attorney Gary Richardson is a Republican.
Government and defense attorneys exchanged heated political accusations Thursday before the case was sent to the jury.
The politically sensitive case was given to the eight-man and four-woman jury by Judge Seay at 1:26 p.m. Thursday on the ninth day of the trial.
The anticipated political fireworks exploded in closing arguments before the jury.
Richardson and Donn Baker, the assistant prosecutor, labeled the House speaker and his top Lieutenant as powerful men who thought they were above the law.
Defense attorneys Gene Stipe and Bruce Green said the prosecutors struck a deal with a family of criminals as key witnesses “to deliver Dan Draper.”
Three government witnesses, all members of the Barney Girdner Jr. family, have records and a fourth has been granted immunity from prosecution in the vote fraud case.
Girdner pleaded guilty to a vote fraud conspiracy count and his mother, Dora “Mama Dode” Girdner, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor mail obstruction charge.
Ruth Ann Hembree, Girdner’s son, John, were granted immunity for their testimony in the Draper-Fitzgibbon case.
Draper has served 13 years in the Oklahoma Legislature and is in his third term as speaker. It was anticipated that he would seek an unprecedented fourth term as speaker in 1984.
Draper was placed in the back room of the grocery store by several members of the Girdner family. Draper said he left with ballots, but the ballot jackets were sealed.
Richardson said the Girdner family testified that the voting packets weren’t sealed and implied that Draper went through them in the four days before they were mailed Sept. 18 at Stilwell.
Draper’s father, Dan Draper II, who received five absentee votes in the primary election, got 79 in the Sept. 21, runoff but was defeated.
Larry Adair, the winner, received 97 absentee ballots in the runoff.
Stipe said Fitzgibbon only wanted to help the elder Draper win election.
“My client wandered into Adair County without knowing it was a nest of vipers,” Stipe said.
Girdner was a losing candidate in the primary election and supported the elder Draper in the runoff.
Back
