SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah Attorney General John Swallow has requested a lawsuit accusing him of federal election fraud be thrown out because he says it violates his right to free speech. Swallow filed the case dismissal Monday in
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah Attorney General John Swallow has requested a lawsuit accusing him of federal election fraud be thrown out because he says it violates his right to free speech.
Swallow filed the case dismissal Monday in Salt Lake City’s U.S. District Court.
The Federal Election Commission accused Swallow and former Utah businessman Jeremy Johnson of breaking a campaign finance law that bans the use of straw donors to bankroll campaigns. Johnson is accused of funneling money to candidates under Swallow’s guidance.
But Swallow’s attorneys argue their client is being illegally prosecuted under a “secondary liability” rule that holds one person legally responsible for helping another.
Johnson is currently serving a federal prison sentence, which he is appealing, after being convicted on eight counts of lying to a bank in 2016.
