"And yet, here I am running for attorney general to restore integrity, justice and morality in Michigan.. After realizing there were problems with the numbers, Antrim County Clerk Sheryl Guy's office canvassed the election results and reported official numbers. The numbers became jumbled during the communication of the unofficial results to the county's election management system. I just think this guy is going to be looking for election fraud under rocks," LaBrant said. I honestly believe on the first vote shes going to have the most votes," Forton said in an interview on the convention floor of Karamo. ", Karamo dismissed concerns about declining donations to the state party, saying thats going to change right away.. Natalie DePerno, 23, graduated with an accounting degree from MSU. Ironically, DePerno, who was a fierce opponent of the 2020 election results and consistently denied their outcome, conceded the race for attorney general prior to it being called by media outlets. He been critical of Nessels record as attorney general, accusing her of botching the criminal case involving the Flint water scandal and referring to her as drunk Dana because she admitted being intoxicated at a college football game. But six days after the Moffits refused to pay his fees, DePerno took action to try and collect: He began foreclosure proceedings to sell the Moffits new home and the land where their old home had burned down, according to court filings. Nessel joked about a "drag queen for every school" during an event in June. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has been declared the winner in the race for the state's top job. He moved to Kalamazoo Michigan in 1995 after law school, where he currently resides with his wife of 25 years, Laura and their two dogs Toby and Kodak. DePerno was fired from one law firm, fought over client records after leaving a second firm and was accused of assaulting a client amid a fee dispute, according to court documents and transcripts reviewed by Bridge. New York University School of Law Master of Laws (LL.M.) In August, Nessel sought a special prosecutor to consider charges against DePerno and eight others over an alleged conspiracy to gain improper access to voting machines. Trump's backing helped DePerno win a three-way race at an April convention for the party's attorney general nomination. The contraceptive prevents ovulation and does not induce an abortion. On his website he states he would declare critical race theory unconstitutional, calling it a Marxist agenda.. The warrant was in place as DePerno led high-profile litigation in the weeks after the November 2020 presidential election to challenge the results in northern Michigan's Antrim County. On Nov. 8, voters will decide whether to put him in the attorney general's office. DePerno has called Nessel's allegations garbage and said she's using the investigatory powers of her office for political purposes. Dodge has since retired and told Bridge Michigan he did not remember the dispute well. 469 views. Ann Arbor Republican Matt DePerno, who's asking voters to make him Michigan's top law enforcement official on Nov. 8, faced a bench warrant for his arrest about two months before he. After practicing law for a decade as a law firm partner, Matt opened the doors of his own practice, DePerno Law, PLLC, in 2005, where he has since been ardently defending Americans constitutional rights. Who's in, out of race? Buhl, the retired judge who had prepared to serve as an expert witness for the Moffits legal defense team, asked the Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission to investigate DePerno in 2016. In recent weeks, DePerno has campaigned on strengthening parents' rights and showed up at a contentious Dearborn school board meeting over books in a school library with sexual or violent content to speak on the issue. But he never did, the Moffits attorney alleged in the malpractice suit. Matthew and his team captured forensic images of the Dominion Voting machines and conducted forensic analyses of those images to fully understand the errors and inconsistencies in the voting process and tabulation procedures prior to, during, and after the 2020 general election. Hes helped a Portage high school studentrejoin the tennis teamafter she had been kicked off following an illegal search of her car that revealed remnants of marijuana, DePerno said. Nessel's office began its investigation in February, before DePerno was her opponent. DePerno has also represented George Dernis, an Illinois businessman who's been in a years-long legal battle involving property in Michigan. A Republican running to be Michigans top law enforcement official was fired from a law firm in 2005 after colleagues alleged he padded client billings for personal and professional benefit, according tocourt recordsreviewed by Bridge Michigan. Two years into what had become a vicious legal fight, DePerno allegedly pressured the Moffits to sign a fee agreement that put their property mortgages up as collateral in the event they could not pay DePernos legal bills, which Buhl described as an unorthodox deal the kind of which he had never seen before. Instead, DePerno filed a counter-claim against the insurance company without the knowledge or consent of his clients, which prompted the insurer to stop its initial payment. State Rep. Ryan Berman is also running. "Him and I had discussions as to whether I should run," DePerno said. Nessel's race was seen as one of the closer statewide campaigns during the tight midterm race. All (DePerno) was interested in was generating fees for himself and protecting his way to collect it, Buhl said. Lansing Kristina Karamo, who lost her secretary of state race by 14 percentage points but refused to concede, will lead the Michigan Republican Party following an 11-hour convention and three rounds of voting Saturday at the Lansing Center. "Mr. DePerno has received calls from the sheriff's deputy that's going to come and try to execute writs of execution, I guess, on his office furniture and supplies," Baker said during a Jan. 16, 2020, court hearing. The COVID-19 pandemic hit Michigan weeks after the DePerno bench warrant was signed. Those allegations, contained in never-before-reported documents out of Kalamazoo County Circuit Court, were only made public because DePerno sued the firm in an attempt to cash out his shares and transfer the lease on a company vehicle that was repossessed after his firing. He has a wife and three children. DePerno took on "several cases regarding the unconstitutional nature of these lockdowns and mandates.". I have fought to try to vindicate President Trump when no one else would., Doing the right thing doesnt always make you popular," DePerno added moments later. The grievance commission, the investigative arm of the Michigan Supreme Court, only makes its findings public if it authorizes formal charges against a lawyer with the state Attorney Discipline Board, which it did not do for DePerno. Vote Furyk. Matt DePerno: Liar, Liar Pants on Fire From Plan B to the 2020 Elections, DePerno continues to lie his way through this election LANSING The Michigan Democratic Party today denounced statements made by GOP attorney general candidate Matt DePerno regarding his alleged involvement in a plot to illegally access voting tabulation machines. He also has a big fan inside the Michigan Republican Party: co-chair Meshawn Maddock, who endorsed him earlier this month, an unusual move considering the party traditionally is expected to stay out of contested convention races. "He will never give up, and thats why they absolutely cannot stand him.". The Antrim County case made DePerno a national figure in Trumps campaign to overturn the election but prompted criticism from a Republican-led Michigan Senate panel that accused him ofmaking false claimsfor personal profit, echoing allegations that marred DePernos legal career nearly two decades earlier. DePerno had been endorsed by former President Donald Trump. "The tremendous GOP grassroots enthusiasm for DePerno combined with Nessel trying to shut down Line 5 and talking about a drag queen in every classroom gives DePerno the best chance to win of any Republican on the statewide ticket," said Yob, who previously advised the lawyer's campaign. The sooner they can return to the party of sensibility and economic prosperity, the sooner they can start winning. DePerno is considered a frontrunner for the Michigan Republican Partys nomination for attorney general, along with former state House Speaker Tom Leonard, the GOP nominee in 2018. In a statement, Tyson Shepard, DePerno's campaign manager, said the campaign is focused on issues affecting people across Michigan instead of "washed-out stories from years and years ago.". Forton said his decision was meant to ensure that a "grassroots-type" hopeful had a chance to win. She becomes the first Black person to lead the Michigan GOP. During her remarks on Saturday, Karamo said she refused to concede her 615,000-vote loss to Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson because the election was a "fraudulent process." His experience and record of success has benefited individuals, small business, and multi-national corporations. Gaining unauthorized access to voting machines is a felony in Michigan. Buhl, the former judge, had already been retired for six years when he began observing DePernos legal work because he was asked to serve as an expert witness in the Moffits malpractice suit. Democratic President Joe Biden beat Trump by 154,188 votes in Michigan. A court filing showed the bench warrant was stamped "canceled" on May 6, 2021. And he's not afraid of what has turned into, unfortunately, a convoluted judicial system., Bill Bailey, a real estate broker who DePerno is representing in the ongoing Antrim County election appeal, called him "one of the most honest, hardworking souls I truthfully have ever met.". Karamo was elected as party chairwoman last month, defeating 10 other candidates including Trump-backed former attorney general candidate Matthew DePerno. Aug 7 (Reuters) - The Republican nominee for Michigan attorney general led a team that gained unauthorized access to voting equipment while hunting for evidence to support former President. His campaign website says he will "restore law and order" and "uphold the Constitution.". A secretary at DePernos second law firm the Veritas Group said in a sworn affidavit that she had heard yelling from the conference room as he met with the Moffits. "The sanction award far exceeds the petitioners' ability to pay," Baker wrote in a filing on Jan. 9, 2020. "As attorney general, you're the state's chief law enforcement officer. DePerno skyrocketed to fame in conservative circles in the aftermath of the 2020 election, alleging voting machines were compromised because unofficial results were skewed toward President Joe Biden before they were corrected. Ultimately, I collected the fees that were due to me, DePerno told Bridge. 38th State Senate Candidate for Michigan. Could that Judge then rule on rape cases, or would that create a bias for the Judge? DePerno wasn't paying attention in first grade when he was told how to behave himself, Magistrate Joseph Scoville said in announcing the sanctions at a May 2012 hearing, according to a transcript reviewed by Bridge. Karamo, DePerno and Lansing political consultant Scott Greenlee were initially the top three vote-getters in what was a nine-person race at the start of the convention Saturday morning in downtown Lansing. But the changing tallies led to a wave of concerns and conspiracy theories about what had happened. I have always supported Matt DePerno, said state Rep. Angela Rigas, R-Caledonia, as she entered the convention on Saturday. Ive taken on tough cases. Vote DePerno. during the general election campaign, but a special prosecutor is investigating him and others on allegations they illegally accessed voting machine equipment in their efforts to investigate the election. Matthew DePerno was born in Warren and raised in Troy, Michigan. But DePernos critics say GOP delegates should take a closer look at his legal career, which reveals a series of disputes with colleagues, judges and clients. ", I have been told by our elected officials to stop talking about this issue," DePerno said of the last presidential election, which Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden in Michigan by 3 percentage points or 154,000 votes. I'll continue to write good people in on my election ballots. Not too many people would have stuck by my family and myself like Matt has.". Elissa Slotkin announces bid to succeed Debbie Stabenow. Karamo lost to Benson by 14 percentage points. Michigan GOP precinct delegates will vote to endorse a candidate at an April 23 convention that will decide the partys de facto nominee to take on Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel in November. ", called on DePerno to detail what happened with the money, sought a special prosecutor to consider potential charges against DePerno and eight others because of an alleged "conspiracy" to gain improper access, The DePerno 9: Outspoken election critics tied to Michigan tabulator 'conspiracy', a Democrat who was named the special prosecutor in September, endorsed him to be Michigan's attorney general on Sept. 16, 2021, vowed to "investigate and prosecute Gov. Vote Karamo. Thus began another unexpected legal fight, as the Moffits hired a new attorney to stop the foreclosure sale and sue DePerno for legal malpractice, alleging he fought their insurer without their consent, overbilled and padded billings, including a $13,000 charge to reassemble their case file after DePerno parted ways with his law firm at the time, Veritas Group. Matthew S. DePerno, Esq. 2023 FOX Television Stations, The heaviest snow is behind us heading into the weekend, Snow storm shuts down Detroit Metro Airport, Power outages hit Metro Detroit hard as winter storm pounds area, WATCH - Jennifer Hammond talks with Detroit Titans guard Antoine Davis after coming up just short of the NCAA all-time scoring record, Southeast Michigan weather: The latest totals and what to expect tonight, Dead woman found tied up, wrapped in tarp in abandoned Monroe County building, sources say, Disneyland banned Rebel Wilson over selfie, actress says, Winter storm leaves 205k DTE customers without power, dry and mild weekend ahead, MSP: Driver of crashed car fatally struck on I-96, at-fault driver without license. In November 2020, Antrim County resident, William Bailey, hired Matthew to represent him in his lawsuit against Antrim County and the Michigan Secretary of States office, to conduct his own audit of the November general election irregularities in Antrim County. ", While DePerno said he was conceding the race, he also said he would "refuse to concede that Michigan is a blue state. "I can't answer that question," the lawyer said. Michiganders deserve more from their elected officials, and as American Citizens, our constitutional right to ensure fair, free, and secure elections.