Waukesha alderman challenges recall petition signatures

Waukesha - Waukesha Ald. Peggy Bull on Thursday challenged recall petitions filed against her last week, saying one of the circulators' signature appears to be forged on some pages.

Concerned Citizens of District 7 filed petitions signed by 424 people last week, 78 more than the number required to force a recall election. Frank Greuel and Wayne Dahnke registered as organizers.

In her sworn complaint, Bull challenged five specific petition signers and up to 20 pages of 10 signatures each - or 200 other names - with Greuel's signature as the page circulator.

Her complaint reads, 'It appears as if Mr. Greuel's signature has been forged on multiple petition pages, thus rendering the entire page of signatures invalid.'

Accompanying the complaint is a report from handwriting expert Bonnie L. Schwid of Anagraphics backing up that claim. Schwid identifies herself as certified by the Board of Forensic Document Examiners and qualified as an expert witness testifying in court cases and other legal proceedings.

'It is my professional opinion that there are at least two writers for the signatures of Frank W. Greuel on the petitions,' Schwid concluded. Seven of 20 pages signed by Greuel as the circulator contain someone else's handwriting, she said. Her analysis of one other page with his signature was inconclusive, she said.

'The signatures in question were written with different slants, different pressure, and other individualizing characteristics,' Schwid reported. 'It is apparent that the person or persons who wrote them had a model to copy from,' Schwid reported.

She used Greuel's initial signature, when he registered the recall campaign effort in June, for comparison purposes.

Greuel could not be reached for comment.

The other five signatures that Bull challenged cite a petitioner whose address was outside Bull's aldermanic district, an illegible address and an illegible name that made verification impossible, the absence of a last name on one signature and the absence of a listed address on another.

Whether the names challenged - even if upheld - are sufficient to derail the recall remains to be seen. Even if seven pages of 10 names each and the other five names challenged were thrown out, the group would still appear to have three more signatures than needed, unless other names were discounted by City Clerk-Treasurer Tom Neill.

The recall organizers have five days to refute Bull's complaint, after which she has two days to respond. The city clerk then has 14 days to determine whether the signatures are sufficient.

Recall petition circulators can have a chance to correct some insufficiencies, according to state law on the recall.

In starting the recall, organizers Greuel and Dahnke cited as their reason: 'Alderwoman Bull is not adequately or appropriately representing the interest or view of her constituents.'

Behind the complaint are constituent objections to the placement of six sex offenders in a duplex located in the district and the belief by some that Bull has not done enough to fight the placement - a charge she rejects.