Opinion ID: 770321
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Sharon White

Text: 55 Sharon White lived with her grandmother, Rae Miller White, on Main Street in Crawfordsville. She has a general delivery post office address, and was listed on the County register. On November 5, 1996, Ms. White went to the County polling place, but an election worker there, who knew that Ms. White lived in the City, told her to go across the street and vote at the City polling place, in the Water Department office. 56 When Ms. White got to the City polling place, her name could not be found on the City register. However, Ms. James, the black poll worker, told Ms. Freeman that Ms. White was indeed a City resident. Ms. White was well known to Ms. Freeman, having paid her grandmother's water bill every month at the Water Department office for at least seven years. Tr. 55. In addition, she had known Mr. Howe since she was six years old, having shopped in his store, sometimes every day. Tr. 54. When Ms. White approached the voting table, Ms. Freeman informed her that her name was not on the City voting register, and that she could not vote, because she did not pay a water bill in her own name. Tr. 56-57, 70. No one called the Clerk's Office. Tr. 60, 163, 527-28. Johnny Rogers, the poll watcher, challenged Ms. White's vote, because her name did not appear on the City register, Tr. 671, but most of the challenge form was filled out by someone else. The challenge form stated: Does not appear in the City box, but all say she does. Tr. 754. According to Ms. Carlson, everyone in the polling place, all the officials said that she did live in the City. Tr. 755. Ms. White was given a paper ballot in order to vote in accordance with the procedure described above. When Ms. White voted, two unnamed white men stood over her and watched her, Tr. 59, with Mr. Howe standing about two or three feet behind them. Tr. 71, 78. 57 The defendants introduced very little specific evidence about this incident. Ms. Freeman testified that she did not remember Ms. White's coming into the polling place. The District Court found that Ms. White was not denied her franchise. In a way, this is true, because Ms. White was allowed to cast a challenged paper ballot. On the other hand, her vote was never counted (more about this later), and she was subjected to harassment, with the apparent cooperation of Mr. Howe. We believe that the evidence is overwhelming that both Ms. Freeman and Mr. Howe knew Ms. White, and the fact that Ms. White had been paying her grandmother's water bill, instead of a bill in her own name, had nothing to do with her right to vote. The regular procedure which had been given to the poll workers at training was not followed in this case. The County Clerk's Office was not called, nor was Ms. White given a chance to use a change-of-address form. We hold that the District Court's finding in favor of Ms. Freeman and Mr. Howe is clearly erroneous. With respect to the defendants Carlson and Rogers, however, we affirm. Neither of them lived in the City. In fact, Mr. Rogers did not even live in Crittenden County. He was representing the best interests of his congressional candidate, and his challenge of a ballot being cast by a person whose name was not on the City register is understandable. He could not be expected to be familiar with individual citizens and where they lived.