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Former Congressman Thaddeus McCotter, R-Livonia, makes his way to the the stand Thursday, Oct. 11, 2012 at the 16th District Court in Livonia , Mich. during a preliminary examination of Paul Seewald and Don Yowchuang. Seewald and Yowchuang are charged with conspiracy and other crimes in submitting phony petitions to qualify McCotter for the August Republican primary. (AP Photo/Detroit Free Press, Regina H. Boone) (October 23, 2012) |
LIVONIA, Mich. (AP) — A judge has ordered two men who worked for a Detroit-area congressman to stand trial in a campaign scandal.
Paul Seewald and Don Yowchuang are charged with conspiring to get then-U.S. Rep. Thaddeus McCotter on the ballot with bogus petitions. Yowchuang also is charged with forgery, and both men also face misdemeanors.
The attorney general's office says Livonia Judge Sean Kavanagh announced the decision Tuesday after hearing testimony earlier this month. A Circuit Court arraignment is Nov. 6.
Officials say McCotter's staff turned in less than the 1,000 valid signatures needed to get on the August primary ballot. Some petitions were photocopied and cut and pasted from previous years.
McCotter hasn't been charged. There's no evidence the Livonia Republican was aware of the alleged scheme. He quit office in July.
