AAN Association of Alternative Newsmedia

Writer's 2004 Piece in NOW Leads to Federal Charges

By AAN Staff

january 8, 2008 08:38 am

In "How I Could Have Voted Three Times," James Di Fiore claimed that no fixed address or ID card was required to vote in Canada -- and he went to three polling places on election day to prove it. However, he never explicitly stated that he cast ballots in all three locations. After more than a year had passed, Di Fiore wrote a letter to the Toronto Star admitting that he "voted -- three times." That caught the eye of election officials, and nine months later Di Fiore was charged under the Canada Elections Act. When the trial began in December, Di Fiore told the National Post he was disappointed that NOW was not supporting him. But senior news editor Ellie Kirzner said Di Fiore was to blame. "We felt our story was completely discredited, he had lied to our readers about staying within the bounds of not tampering with the election," she said. "Painful as it was for us, we realized we could not defend the story." Di Fiore's trial resumes in February. He faces a maximum penalty of a $1,000 fine and up to three months in prison.

View full article at The National Post