BREAKING NEWS — READ IT HERE FIRST

Nearly two years after the allegations were first made, the Circuit Attorney’s office filed charges today against the people alleged to have forged the signatures of 22nd Ward residents — some of them dead ones — in the failed attempt to recall Alderman Jeffery Boyd.

Petitioners Linda Rogers, Sebekhu Smith and Charles Keller now face felony election violations.

It was back in December 2005 that PubDef first reported that Boyd’s rivals, former Aldermen Kenny Jones and Jay Ozier, had failed in their attempt to remove Boyd from office. Their recall petition fell short of the required number of signatures after Election Board officials said they discovered that many of the signatures were “blatant” forgeries.

“It was evident by the St. Louis City Board of Election Commissioners that those persons being charged today had in fact willfully misled us in their recall petition drive,” said Director of Elections Scott Leiendecker in a statement today.

Boyd, who was recently overwhelmingly re-elected, said that today’s charges are a long-awaited first step. “I think we’re close to justice and I think the people can feel a little more at ease that this did not go unnoticed,” he said.

But Boyd wonders if other indictments will follow.

“It’s always the little people that take the fall, but where did it all start?”