Judge Inclined to Order a Stay on Subpoenas From Dornan

U.S. District Judge Gary L. Taylor said Thursday that he would “likely” issue a stay today of the dozens of subpoenas issued in the past week by former Rep. Robert K. Dornan.

The stay would last at least until Wednesday when Taylor scheduled a hearing on whether the dozens of subpoenas Dornan has issued should be voided. The defeated congressman has sent more than 40 subpoenas to a variety of people and organizations seeking documents to support his claim that last November’s election was tainted by voter fraud and should be rerun.

Taylor left open the possibility that he would hear arguments today from Dornan’s lawyer, Bill Hart, that would cause him to change his mind.

“I am making a tentative ruling to stay the matter, barring some substantive showing tomorrow,” he told Hart and lawyers representing people subpoenaed by Dornan as well as Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Garden Grove), who won the election by 984 votes.

Dornan’s lawyers were set to have a service appear this morning at some of the places served by subpoenas and begin copying some of the records sought, Hart said.

Those receiving the demand for records include Sanchez, her husband Stephen Brixey III, various citizenship organizations, the Orange County registrar of voters office, the district attorney’s office and several other state and local agencies, as well as Hermandad Mexicana Nacional, a Latino rights organization that has been at the center of voter fraud allegations.