Ohio nun pleads guilty to charge of illegal voting
Apr 16, 2013, 7:54 PM
CINCINNATI (AP) – A southwest Ohio nun who cast a ballot on behalf of a nun who died before last year’s presidential election has pleaded guilty to an illegal voting charge.
Assistant Hamilton County Prosecutor Bill Anderson says 55-year-old Sister Marguerite Kloos (kloos) pleaded guilty Tuesday in Cincinnati. Anderson says the charge will be erased if Kloos fulfills a diversion program, including community service.
The charge carries a potential maximum sentence of 18 months. But Anderson says first-time offenders are rarely sentenced to prison in such cases.
Defense attorney Ralph Kohnen (KOH’-nihn) didn’t immediately return a call. He previously said Kloos tried to fulfill her friend’s wishes.
Court documents say Sister Rose Marie Hewitt died before receiving an absentee ballot. The documents say Kloos forged Hewitt’s signature and mailed it off.
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