After several University of Alabama greek organizations filed with local attorney Robert Prince for legal intervention in the upcoming election contest between Kelly Horwitz and Cason Kirby, Prince said he will now be amending the motion to remove several organizations’ names.
Last week, Prince filed the motion on behalf of Pi Kappa Alpha, Zeta Tau Alpha, Kappa Delta, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Alpha Omicron Pi and UA student Sayre Kearley.
On Monday, the headquarters for Alpha Omicron Pi told AL.com that the chapter asked to be removed from the legal document and that “chapter members and advisors do not have the authority to hire legal representation on behalf of a chapter of Alpha Omicron Pi.”
Furthermore, in an emailed statement, Zeta Tau Alpha national president Keeley McDonald Riddle denied the involvement of the sorority in both the lawsuit and the motion to intervene.
“Zeta Tau Alpha has not been named as a party in any of these lawsuits, and therefore we have not hired legal representation locally or nationally,” Riddle said.
The Crimson White also reached out to the headquarters of Pi Kappa Alpha, Kappa Delta and Sigma Alpha Epsilon, though the organizations did not respond in time for print.
According to the document, the motion to intervene also includes other UA students and registered voters who voted in District 4, who are to be named at a later time.
Prince said he was surprised the plaintiff chose to list the names of the students, noting how some “were eighteen and nineteen years old.”
“Needless to say, that has had a chilling effect on some of them about exercising their right to vote,” Prince said in an emailed statement. “They, as all qualified U.S. citizens, have the right to freely cast their vote and do it by secret ballot. Our petition to intervene in behalf of the listed fraternities and sororities is designed to protect that right, while hopefully shielding them from further personal condemnation.”
The motion denies all illegal misconduct of said parties, stating “the Intervenors deny that they are guilty of any conduct that would warrant their vote being voided or not counted and Intervenors affirmatively state that they are entitled to a free and full exercise of their rights as U.S. citizens, voters and electors.”
The document goes on to delineate the voters’ rights as according to the Alabama Code, stating that the Intervenors are “all properly qualified and registered voters in District 4.”
The contest comes in response to the Aug. 27 District 4 Board of Education elections, where Kirby beat Horwitz by 87 votes. Following the election, Horwitz alleged widespread voter fraud, largely focused on the UA greek community, including allegations of free drinks for votes and dishonest voter registration.
Horwitz is now contesting 397 votes from the election, at least 392 of which were cast by students. Kirby’s attorney, Andy Campbell, has denied any involvement by Kirby in the alleged fraud, saying Horwitz’s argument is “untrue and unsupported by the evidence.”
The testimony of the 397 voters will now be evaluated in the form of a 36-question affidavit, which largely focusing on evaluating the residence of the voter. The affidavits are due to the court Oct. 31, with the final trial date set for Nov. 18.
