Gov. Robert Ehrlich aide found guilty of conspiring to suppress black voter turnout

Paul Schurick (WBAL)

Paul Schurick (WBAL)

There's mythical voter fraud, and then there's this.

BALTIMORE—A Baltimore jury has convicted a political aide to former Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich of conspiring to suppress black voter turnout during the 2010 gubernatorial election.

Paul Schurick was found guilty Tuesday of four counts, including conspiracy to violate state election laws and attempting to influence a voter’s decision whether to go to the polls through the use of fraud.

The case stems from robo-calls sent on election day to about 110,000 Democratic voters in primarily black precincts. The calls told these voters that they didn't need to to vote because, "Governor O'Malley and President Obama have been successful." The call continued with "Our goals have been met. The polls were correct, and we took it back. We're OK. Relax. Everything's fine. The only thing left is to watch it on TV tonight. Congratulations, and thank you."

Schurick argued that the calls were intended "to mobilize crossover Democrats, not keep people from going to the polls." Not surprisingly, the jury didn't buy it.