Federal and state authorities are investigating a security breach of voting machines . A Colorado county elections clerk was released on Thursday under investigation. He was facing two misdemeanors in another case.
Tina Peters was the Mesa County clerk and recorder. She was charged with obstructing peace officers and obstructing the government operations. Megan Terlecky spokeswoman for Mesa County Sheriff’s Office said that she posted a $500 bond.
Grand Junction police attempted to seize Peters’ iPad on Tuesday. The local District Attorney’s Office is looking into whether Peters recorded a Monday court hearing for Belinda Knisley (an election deputy) who was charged in the security breach investigation.
Peters claimed that she wasn’t recording the session during the hearing, but a deputy prosecution and court reporter insisted she was. The Grand Junction Sentinel reported. The proceedings were not allowed to be recorded audio or video.
According to an arrest warrant, Peters was accused of resisting police attempts to seize her iPad while she was sitting at a cafe on Tuesday. She also allegedly tried to kick an officer trying to arrest him.
The Sentinel reported that she was briefly held and then released. The misdemeanor charges were filed against her, which can result in fines and possible jail time.
Peters was not able to leave a message for comment because her voicemail system said that it was full.
Rory McShane was a spokesperson for Peters’ legal defence fund. He said that Peters refused because police tried to take her other items including her car keys and electronic devices.
Peters is now a champion for those who believe the 2020 election was fraudulent, even though she claims that elections in Mesa County which voted for Donald Trump overwhelmingly were secure and fair. In 2020, Trump was defeated in Colorado by Joe Biden, a Democrat.
Peters is being investigated by the Mesa County Grand Jury in relation to allegations of election equipment tampering. In connection with the May security breach that involved election equipment, the FBI and Colorado officials are also investigating Peters.
Peters denied any wrongdoing.
Jena Griswold, Colorado Secretary of State, claims that images of Mesa County’s election management software were stolen by elections conspiracy theorists who then posted them on far-right blogs.
Griswold’s office claims that one of the photos was taken inside a Mesa County secure room where the voting equipment was kept. Peters had allowed a non-employee to enter the room.
Griswold, a Democrat has filed a lawsuit to have Peters, a Republican removed from the administration of the 2022 election. Griswold won a lawsuit to remove Peters from the administration of last November’s midterm elections.
District Attorney Daniel Rubinstein filed cybercrime and second-degree burglary charges against Knisley.
Mesa County officials sent Knisley a notice in August advising her of her suspension. They explained that they had received numerous workplace harassment complaints.
According to an arrest affidavit, Knisley attempted to access the county’s network computer using Peters’ computer login credentials.
