8/11 Camera editorial: County looks silly hassling citizen watchdog

[Doug Grinbergs <saule@xxxxxxxxx>]

http://www.dailycamera.com/bdc/editorials/article/0,1713,BDC_2489_3101206,00.html
Free Al Kolwicz!
County looks silly hassling citizen watchdog
Editorial
Daily Camera
August 11, 2004


Last we looked, being fastidious - "very attentive to and concerned 
about accuracy and detail," says the New Oxford American Dictionary - 
wasn't a crime. But the Boulder County Clerk and Recorder's Office 
evidently didn't get that memo.

Last Thursday, officials ordered Al Kolwicz, a Republican 
representative to the elections canvass board, off the premises, and 
reported him to police for allegedly "interfering" with an election.

Police are mulling charges, but if their obvious lack of enthusiasm 
is any indication, they're embarrassed to have been dragged into this 
foolishness.

Kolwicz' alleged "crime"? Being too nitpicky during a "logic and 
accuracy test" required under state law prior to an election.

The test is supposed to determine whether equipment accurately 
tallies votes. Kolwicz submitted test ballots that were improperly 
marked, ballots stained with food, and other irregularities, to see 
how our as-yet-untested voting system would perform - a real, 
modern-day Jesse James.

Of course, Kolwicz' real offense is that he's been a burr under the 
saddle of convenience-obsessed election officials for months, asking 
hard questions about the new system. To hear state and local 
officials tell it, citizens should just buzz off and leave elections 
to the pros: "Just trust us."

But post-Florida, that's not good enough. Citizens should be grateful 
for people like Kolwicz who demand accountability while the rest of 
us are snoozing.

Hassling citizen watchdogs is a laughably bad idea. The clerk's 
office should stop pursuing silly charges against Kolwicz, or risk 
looking even sillier when the case comes before a judge.