A former employee in the Pulaski County clerk’s office in Arkansas received a suspended prison sentence this week after she pleaded no contest to a Class D felony for illegally altering election records.

Circuit Judge Karen Whatley gave Deborah Smith a two-year suspended sentence on Tuesday as part of a plea agreement with the state attorney general's office. The charge initially carried a maximum penalty of six years in prison.

Special Agent JayP Massiet with the Election Integrity Unit in the state attorney general's office launched an investigation in April 2025, after accusations surfaced that a county elections worker appeared to have altered precinct data within the county's street file. The alteration affected 132 voter records, according to the Arkansas Democrat Gazette.

Officials determined the change could not have been done by mistake because it encompassed a deliberate, 12-step process that included navigating multiple screens, using scroll functions and using a specialized device to generate a single-use security code. 

System logs indicated that in October 2024, Smith used her username, password and personal identification number to change the precinct numbers in the street file and she clocked out one minute later.

The change relocated Nicole Hart, a candidate for the North Little Rock City Council, which moved her from a North Little Rock ward to a Maumelle precinct.

No motive for Smith's actions has been disclosed, and she resigned after authorities grew suspicious of her.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.