SANTA ANA, Calif., March 20, 2026 — A candidate for Orange County Superior Court has filed a lawsuit against the Orange County Registrar of Voters alleging that a sitting judge seeking reelection is attempting to appear on the June 2, 2026 primary ballot under a previously unused name form that is not the one voters know, and is using a candidate statement that is false or misleading.
Charles E. Pell, a federal prosecutor for 20 years, led two of the biggest public corruption cases in Orange County, is asking the court to order Registrar Bob Page to change the ballot name and candidate statement submitted by Judge Ami Sheth Sagel before ballots are printed next week.
Meanwhile, candidate Sheth Sagel seeks to have Pell’s job title, federal criminal prosecutor, removed from the ballot, claiming that he should be required to use his former formal title of “Assistant United States Attorney.” Pell led federal criminal cases against former Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do for a bribery scheme involving Covid-19 relief funds, and a case against former Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu, for federal criminal charges stemming from the attempted sale of city-owned Anaheim Stadium.
The matter will be heard at 1:30 p.m. Friday, March 20, before San Bernardino Superior Court Judge Wilfred J. Schneider Jr. The matter was transferred to the nearby county for adjudication because Sheth Sagel is a sitting Orange County Superior Court judge.
Pell and Sheth Sagel are vying for Office No. 41 on the county’s superior court. The lawsuit — technically a “petition for a writ of mandate” — was filed March 11 by Pell’s attorney.
According to the writ, Sheth Sagel has for years been known professionally, publicly and judicially as “Ami Sheth Sagel,” including on court websites, judicial rosters, State Bar records, public filings and judicial orders. Pell alleges Sheth Sagel’s effort to appear on the ballot as “Ami S. Sagel” is either an unlawful ballot-name change made for election purposes within one year of the election or, at minimum, a false and misleading use of a name that is not the same as she uses in public.
The petition argues that this is not a minor formatting issue. It contends that voters in a judicial race are entitled to accurate identifying information and should not be asked to evaluate a candidate under a shortened name she has not consistently used in her work on the bench or in public life.
“Ami Sheth Sagel can’t claim to be the incumbent running for this seat and at the same time run away from the name she’s been using since she was appointed as a judge,” Pell said. “It appears she’s running away from her record and her public ratings, which paint a picture of someone who doesn’t have a good temperament.” Sheth Sagel became the target of a nascent recall campaign earlier this year.
Pell also challenges portions of Sheth Sagel’s candidate statement. The lawsuit seeks to remove references to “Ami S. Sagel” and “Ami Sagel,” and asks the court to strike or amend statements that say “Ami Sagel currently serves Orange County as a Superior Court Judge.”
Allowing the ballot name and candidate statement to stand would cause irreparable harm to Pell and Orange County voters by placing false, misleading or unlawful information into official election materials before the June 2 election, according to the writ.
Pell’s attorney submitted administrative complaints to the Registrar of Voters in February asking the office to reject “Ami S. Sagel” in favor of “Ami Sheth Sagel,” and to ask Sheth Sagel to “do the right thing” and use her actual judge name rather than a different ballot-only one. Page declined.