Federal authorities arrested a California man accused of running a brazen petition fraud operation that allegedly paid homeless people in Los Angeles to forge signatures using the identities of registered voters.
The case is raising fresh concerns about election safeguards in a state notorious for loose voting rules.
James Brass, 47, also known as Lord, was taken into federal custody Thursday morning in Victorville, roughly 85 miles northeast of Los Angeles.
The Justice Department said Brass worked with two other defendants to qualify ballot initiatives for local elections through fraudulent signatures.
Courtney Price, 49, of Jacksonville, Florida, and Jateisha Herron, 33, of Boron, California, were also charged in the alleged operation.
All three face conspiracy to commit identity fraud in furtherance of a state felony, while Brass and Price face additional identity fraud charges.
WATCH:
FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News Digital, “Securing American elections from criminal interference is of the utmost importance to this FBI.”
The bureau under Patel has repeatedly emphasized that election integrity investigations will remain a central enforcement priority.
Patel added, “For at least 6 months in 2026, these subjects were allegedly paying homeless people on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles to sign petitions in support of ballot initiatives, all using stolen identities of registered voters.”
“Election security will always be a top priority of this FBI,” Patel said.
This morning, the FBI and our partners arrested a subject near Los Angeles for allegedly paying homeless individuals on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles to sign petitions in support of ballot initiatives—all using stolen identities of registered voters.
Two additional…
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) September 10, 2026
That assurance comes as voters continue demanding accountability after years of being told that concerns about election fraud were somehow beyond polite discussion.
Federal prosecutors allege Brass managed a team of signature collectors and personally collected signatures as part of the operation.
Price and Herron allegedly worked for Brass, helping carry out a scheme that turned stolen voter information into petition signatures.
Authorities say the defendants obtained the identities of registered voters from a database between February and August.
That personal information was then allegedly handed to homeless people living around Skid Row, one of the largest concentrations of homelessness in the country.
The homeless participants were allegedly paid to sign ballot petitions using the names of those registered voters.
If prosecutors prove the claims, the operation did not merely cut corners, it treated voter identities as merchandise and vulnerable people as tools.
After signatures were collected, Brass and Herron allegedly signed declarations claiming they personally witnessed the listed voters sign the petitions.
Those declarations further asserted that each signature was, to the best of their knowledge, “the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be.”
WATCH:
Prosecutors say those representations were false and that the petitions were then submitted to petition coordinators.
Brass allegedly received $41,600 from one petition management company, showing how a system built around paid signatures can create lucrative incentives for fraud.
The allegations expose an obvious weakness in California’s political machinery.
When signature collectors are paid and verification is treated like an afterthought, bad actors have every reason to test just how asleep the gatekeepers may be.
Bill Essayli, first assistant United States attorney for the Central District of California, said the alleged conduct “undermines the confidence voters have in our election systems.”
He added that his office “will vigorously investigate and charge anyone involved in corrupting our elections.”
California Election Fraud Update:
James Brass, 47, of Victorville, was arrested today on a federal indictment charging him with paying people on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles to sign petitions using stolen identities of registered voters to qualify initiatives on ballots in… https://t.co/TqzEtO51DK
— F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) September 10, 2026
That confidence matters because ballot petitions can determine which measures reach voters and shape policy at both the local and state levels.
Fraudulent signatures can distort that process before citizens ever enter a voting booth, giving organized operators power that honest voters never authorized.
Each defendant faces as many as five years in federal prison per count if convicted.
Brass was expected to make his initial court appearance Thursday, while the allegations against Price and Herron will proceed through the federal court system.
The defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty, but the accusations present California officials with serious questions about identity protection and petition verification.
Voters deserve more than lectures about trusting the system, especially when federal agents are arresting people accused of exploiting it.
