The Detective’s DeskNabil Cole
Announcer
What happened from your point of view?
I read the complete count handed to me.
What should I check to test that account?
I was given page 2 only.
EASY · CASE FILE
The Vanishing Vote
Easy · A residents’ meeting
A ballot total drops between the count and the announcement. Question the counters and check which page disappeared.
Read the case file below, or open the interactive desk to examine records, keep notes and submit your reasoning. These are the case materials, without the solution.
The scene
The meeting uses two signed count pages. No ballot itself has been destroyed.
People and accounts
Rose Hart
Count supervisor
What happened from your point of view?
Page 1 was blank, so I kept it out.
What should I check to test that account?
I placed it under my clipboard.
Eli North
Second counter
What happened from your point of view?
I signed page 1 with twelve votes for Lea.
What should I check to test that account?
Page 2 carries nine votes for Tom.
Case records
Read each record on its own terms. A claim made by a person is different from a fact established by an independent record.
Case record · Count table
Recovered first page
Page 1 under Rose’s clipboard contains twelve Lea votes and both counters’ signatures; it is not blank.
Case record · Lectern
Announced second page
Nabil’s only page contains nine Tom votes and is clearly labelled “2 of 2”.
Case record · Count table
Dual count receipt
Rose signs that she received both completed pages from the counters before taking them to the lectern.
Case record · Lectern
Announcement recording
Nabil says he has received only page 2 and asks for the missing first page before reading a provisional total.
Questions to resolve
Who withheld the completed page?
What does the full count show?
Use the interactive case desk to select your finding and cite the records that support it. The answer is checked there, and your progress stays in your browser.
Build your finding
Compare the records with each account. Work out what the evidence establishes, then separate that finding from anything it does not prove.