Devine pre-indictment conference pushed back to May 25

The pre-indictment conference of James Devine, a political consultant charged with faking nominating petitions, has been pushed back to May 25 after originally being scheduled for this morning. A Superior Court official told the New Jersey Globe that the delay is because Devine’s public defender only received discovery today and needs more time to review the case.

Last weekend, Devine was charged with three counts of election fraud by the state Attorney General’s office, which alleges that Devine filed around 1,948 fraudulent petitions to get his partner, perennial candidate Lisa McCormick, on the ballot for the 2021 Democratic gubernatorial primary.

According to an affidavit filed by an investigator with the Attorney General’s Office of Public Integrity and Accountability, Devine has admitted to investigators that he submitted fake petitions. If convicted, he potentially faces more than 11 years in prison.

Even with the pending charges, Devine is apparently still involving himself in campaigns. His trial was originally rescheduled for June 1, but he protested, telling a court official that that date would conflict with his work in this year’s primary elections.

“I work on elections, and the election is June 6,” he said.

The date was then moved forward to May 25; he protested once again, but to no avail.