A Florida teen's desire to be queen of the homecoming court has landed her in a courtroom.
Emily Rose Grover and her mother, 50-year-old Laura Rose Carroll, are facing multiple felonies for rigging the October 2020 Homecoming queen vote ahead of the annual dance at Tate High School in Pensacola. As assistant principal at Bellview Elementary school, which is located in the same county, Carroll was able to gain access to the district's internal system and cast cast hundreds of fraudulent votes in her daughter's favor.
© Escambia County JailMom Laura Rose Carroll, on left, and her daughter Emily Rose Grover, on right.
Mom Laura Rose Carroll, on left, and her daughter Emily Rose Grover, on right. (Escambia County Jail/)
An investigation was launched into the matter after the Escambia County School District reported unauthorized access into hundreds of student accounts, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. During an initial investigation, authorities discovered 117 votes cast from the same IP address within a short period of time.
Ultimately, they found 246 votes cast for homecoming court from Carroll's cellphone and computers at her home.
Several students also told authorities they heard Grover bragging about using her mother's school district account to cast votes in a bid to win the crown.
Investigators said Carroll had district level access to the school board's computer program. System users are required to change their password every 45 days, and Carroll's annual training for the "Staff Responsible Use of Guidelines for Technology" was up to date, the agency said.
The mother-daughter duo were arrested in March on charges including unlawful use of a two-way communications device and criminal use of personally identifiable information. While Grover was 17 at the time of her arrest, she turned 18 in April, and will be tried as an adult.
With News Wire Services