Here's the AP article
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: May 19, 2005
Filed at 11:41 a.m. ET
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Ending one of the last fights from the contentious
2004 presidential campaign, the Ohio Supreme Court on Thursday declined to
punish four attorneys who had challenged the results in court.
Chief Justice Thomas Moyer ruled against Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro's
attempt to have the lawyers sanctioned for filing ''a meritless claim''
against the vote that gave President Bush a win in Ohio and, as a result,
enough electoral votes to win a second term in the White House.
In legal documents filed with the state Supreme Court, the lawyers had said
the challenge they filed on behalf of 37 voters included enough evidence of
voting irregularities to back up their allegations of widespread fraud.
They later withdrew the claim.
Petro, a Republican, asked for sanctions against lawyers Cliff Arnebeck,
Robert Fitrakis, Susan Truitt and Peter Peckarsky. If the court had
sanctioned the lawyers, they could have been forced to repay attorney's
fees and court costs.
Moyer, acting under the court's power to assign election-related complaints
to a single justice, said that while the court has the authority to
sanction attorneys, the speed with which elections must be challenged
allows the court some leeway.
''The General Assembly could have expressly authorized courts to sanction
those who pursue frivolous election contests. It has not,'' Moyer, a
Republican, wrote in his decision.
President Bush beat Democratic Sen. John Kerry by about 118,000 votes in
Ohio, which turned out to be the pivotal state in the Nov. 2 election. The
lawyers' election challenge was withdrawn in early January, with those
contesting the results saying it was clear their argument would be
dismissed as moot with Bush set to be inaugurated.
Barbara Burt, Common Cause Election Reform Team Leader | 
