WEST PALM BEACH - Election officials successfully counted every ballot cast in a test of Palm Beach County's electronic voting system Friday.
The test originally was to be Tuesday, but a computer server crash forced a postponement. Elections Supervisor Theresa LePore said the crash likely resulted from room temperatures creeping into the 90s while air conditioning was inoperable during a recent hurricane-caused power outage. The problem involved a server that tallies the votes cast on the county's new touch screen voting machines, not the machines themselves.
"This shows we are ready for an election in Palm Beach County," LePore said after Friday's test.
If a similar problem occurred on election night, vote totals stored on cartridges in each voting machine could be fed to a new server, LePore said.
Youthful council member faces lewdness charges
WILLISTON - A Williston City Council member who was elected last year as an 18-year-old high school senior faces charges alleging he had sexual contact with a 15-year-old girl.
Justin Lee Landon, 20, was charged Thursday with 18 counts of lewd and lascivious conduct and one count each of interference with parental custody and exposing a minor to pornography.
State Attorney Bill Cervone said the charges followed "an exhaustive investigation" by Williston police and the Levy County Sheriff's Office, but no details of the allegations were released. The girl's parents last month obtained an injunction to keep Landon away from her.
When elected in July 2003 to a two-year term on the council, Landon received statewide recognition, including an invitation to the Governor's Mansion in December for a Christmas party.
He is a full-time student at Santa Fe Community College.
