2 Trump-tied lawyers step into Michigan election cases

HILLSDALE, Mich. — Two attorneys with ties to President Donald Trump are getting involved as defense lawyers with two separate criminal cases against Oakland County lawyer Stefanie Lambert that charge her with mishandling voter data and election machines.

Kurt Olsen, a Washington, D.C., lawyer with a history of challenging election results, appeared Friday morning in Hillsdale County District Court, where, during a preliminary examination, he argued on behalf of Lambert and former Adams Township Clerk Stephanie Scott.

Later in the day Friday, in Oakland County Circuit Court, Lambert and her attorney Daniel Hartman argued for Hartman's withdrawal and his replacement, according to court records, with Florida attorney Peter Ticktin, a former schoolmate of Trump's who has advocated for the pardon of some individuals involved in the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

Lambert successfully lobbied to have her Oakland County trial, which was scheduled to begin Monday, postponed until after Ticktin could be brought on board and after other matters stemming from the Hillsdale case could be resolved. Hartman still is listed as her attorney of record until she submits a motion to substitute Ticktin for him, the judge ruled.

In Hillsdale County, the case stems from charges brought by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel in April 2024 accusing Lambert of illicitly transmitting data from the Adams Township electronic poll book, which features personal information on eligible voters in the jurisdiction, under Scott's direction so another individual could conduct an "examination" of the information.

Lambert's attorney had previously been Hartman, an attorney based in Michigan. Olsen told reporters he got involved in the case several months ago.

"I don't think there was any basis for these charges," Olsen added, standing inside a courthouse lobby in Hillsdale.

After the 2020 election, which Republican President Donald Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden, Olsen worked on an unsuccessful lawsuit that reached the U.S. Supreme Court, where Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton attempted to block the certification of the results in four battleground states, including Michigan. Olsen was listed on one filing as special counsel to the Attorney General of Texas.

Also, Olsen attempted to get the U.S. Department of Justice to file a similar case on behalf of the U.S., according to a Senate Judiciary Committee report.

Then, in a March 1, 2022, letter to Olsen, the U.S. House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 Attack said it had found "credible evidence" that Olsen "publicly promoted claims that the 2020 presidential election was fraudulent and participated in attempts to disrupt or delay the certification of the results."

In December 2022, Olsen worked on another lawsuit that challenged the election results in Arizona's gubernatorial race and sought to have Republican Kari Lake declared the winner. Lake lost the race to Democrat Katie Hobbs.

After Trump's defeat in Michigan in 2020, Lambert gained attention and financial backing among Trump supporters, as she attempted to investigate the election and spread dubious claims of fraud.

Hillsdale preliminary exam begins

In the ongoing preliminary examination, Judge Megan Stiverson, who serves in 2B District Court, has been weighing whether Nessel's office has presented enough evidence to prove there's probable cause that crimes occurred.

Lambert is facing three felony charges: using a computer to commit a crime, which would bring up to seven years behind bars, unauthorized access to a computer and conspiracy to commit unauthorized access to a computer.

Scott is facing five felonies and one misdemeanor: using a computer to commit a crime, unauthorized access to a computer, conspiracy to commit unauthorized access to a computer, misconduct in office, concealing or withholding a voting machine and disobeying a lawful instruction or order of the secretary of state.

Friday's proceeding lasted about four hours and focused on Olsen questioning Michigan's elections director, Jonathan Brater. The exam will apparently continue at a later date.

Before then, Olsen asked Brater if bringing a person in to inspect a voting tabulator would violate any Michigan law or administrative rule.

Brater said there are sections of the law that apply to how equipment can be accessed.

"Are you aware of any express prohibition that says an election clerk cannot bring someone else in?" Stiverson asked Brater directly at one point.

"Not that I am aware of," Brater replied.

Oakland County judge delays his 'oldest case'

Immediately after the Hillsdale hearing, Lambert drove nearly 120 miles on Friday afternoon to an Oakland County courthouse in Pontiac, where she is facing a separate set of criminal charges, brought by a special prosecutor, for her alleged involvement in a conspiracy to obtain and improperly access voting machines that were used in the 2020 presidential election.

In Oakland County's 6th Circuit Court, Lambert and her attorney argued for a variety of measures in the case, including Hartman's withdrawal, a delay of trial and the production of a transcript from Brater's Friday testimony in Hillsdale County.

Circuit Judge Jeffery Matis ultimately delayed the trial, on the grounds that Brater’s testimony — to the extent it overlapped with issues at stake in the Oakland County case — should be reproduced in a transcript before the Oakland County trial. Hartman and Lambert had alleged some unspecified portions of Brater’s Friday testimony conflicted with information he gave to the grand jury in the Oakland County case.

Matis set an Aug. 13 pretrial date to set an actual trial date. He noted during the hearing that Lambert’s choice of attorney, Ticktin, likely wouldn’t be available until October.

That’s a “very lengthy, significant” adjournment, the judge said, noting Lambert’s case is the “oldest case” on his docket.

“We need to move this forward,” Matis said.

Lambert's court filing included a Wednesday email from Ticktin indicating he would take her on as a client, but wouldn't be able to go to trial on the matter until after September.

"I want to do this trial," Ticktin wrote. "It is just a matter of being impossible for me before then."

Aside from his school connections with Trump, Ticktin was an attorney on an unsuccessful lawsuit Trump filed against Hillary Clinton and former FBI Director James Comey in relation to an investigation into whether Trump's campaign colluded with Russia in 2016. In May, according to Politico, Ticktin hand-delivered 11 pardon applications to Trump's pardon attorney Ed Martin, including one for Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.

Between his court filings and lengthy comments in court, Hartman offered differing reasons for his discharge and withdrawal as Lambert’s attorney. He noted that he had accidentally mispresented the case as having a stay; he was unable to file an appeal due to time constraints and inexperience; and he was also unable to successfully argue that the laws underlying the charges in the case were flawed.

“She never got a chance to have the law reviewed by this court,” Hartman said.

In a court filing, Hartman also noted he was sick Thursday, that he’d slept through a 6 a.m. phone call with Lambert Thursday, spoke to her briefly at 8 a.m., went back to sleep and awoke at 10 a.m. to learn Lambert had drafted a motion for him to withdraw. Hartman also took issue with the court scheduling hearings on the motions with what he believed to be little notice.

“I cannot function effectively being at the beck and call of courts who do not follow scheduling procedures and protocol and who have no regard for my health,” Hartman wrote.

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