Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl were sentenced to one year of probation by Judge Margaret VanHouten in Wayne County’s 3rd Circuit Court after pleading no contest to charges related to a robocall campaign aimed at suppressing votes among Black residents in Detroit during the 2020 general election. The sentencing follows a Cobbs agreement between the defendants and the court, with Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel appearing as attorney on record for the Department of Attorney General. The department was not involved in negotiating the agreement.
Attorney General Nessel commented on the case, stating: “The defendants’ conduct used every racist dog whistle – fear of incarceration, fear of the government and fear of one’s benefits being taken away – to steal the most fundamental right that we often take for granted: the right to vote. While on probation, if they engage in these types of criminal behaviors, they will be held to account here in Michigan. We all are aware, and this Court has made these defendants aware, that continuing to engage in criminal conduct while on probation is a violation, for which the Department will be ever vigilant about bringing to the attention of their probation agents and this Court. If they willingly choose to engage in the types of repulsive behaviors they have gained notoriety for, this Court and my Department will be watching.”
Burkman and Wohl pleaded no contest to four charges: bribing or intimidating voters under election law; conspiracy to commit an election law violation; using a computer to intimidate voters; and using a computer for conspiracy.
According to prosecutors, Burkman and Wohl created and funded robocalls targeting urban areas across several states—including Detroit—in late August 2020. Nearly 12,000 calls were made to phone numbers registered with Detroit zip codes. The calls spread misinformation suggesting that voting by mail would expose personal information leading police departments or credit card companies to pursue individuals with outstanding warrants or debts. They also falsely claimed that federal health authorities would use mail-in voting records for mandatory vaccine tracking.
The robocalls identified Burkman and Wohl as responsible parties and referred recipients—primarily Black voters—to avoid “being finessed into giving your private information to the man,” warning them against mail-in voting.
After formal charges were filed by Michigan’s Attorney General in 2020, both men faced trial proceedings. Their attempt to quash charges was denied at circuit court level; subsequent appeals were rejected by higher courts including both the Michigan Court of Appeals and Supreme Court at various stages. Ultimately, both appellate courts upheld that their actions fell within constitutional applications of state election law statutes governing voter intimidation.
