More than a dozen men and women who were charged in connection with a vote-harvesting scandal appeared in court on Wednesday morning.

All 15 suspects appeared either in-person at the Frio County Courthouse or virtually for the Wednesday morning hearing.

Six of the 15 suspects, who were indicted in May, entered not guilty pleas earlier this year. The other nine, who were indicted in June, officially pled not guilty in court on Wednesday.

Because other judges in the county excused themselves from the case, it was presided by state Judge Sid Harle of the 4th Administrative Judicial Region via Zoom.

The 4th Administrative Judicial Region spans 22 counties, including Frio.

The suspects are all expected to be back in court in early October.

The 15 suspects

In May, KSAT Investigates broke

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