Additional Coverage:
- Former Colorado clerk was shocked after computer images were shared online, employee testifies (newsbreak.com)
In Grand Junction, Colorado, former county clerk Tina Peters was seen entering the Mesa County Justice Center, accompanied by her legal team for her ongoing trial on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. The trial witness, Sandra Brown, a former colleague of Peters, testified about an incident where an unauthorized individual was allegedly allowed by Peters to access the county’s voting system computer systems disguised as an employee. Brown claimed that Peters contacted her, distressed after seeing the images and videos of the Dominion Voting Systems’ hard drive published online.
During summer 2021, when images from her voting system first appeared online, Brown says Peters told her in a panic, “I don’t know what to do,” cursing due to anxiety about potential repercussions. Following this event, Peters, fearing an investigation, reportedly instructed Brown and another colleague to acquire burner phones and avoid contact with law enforcement agencies, as Brown stated in her testimony.
Brown, who has since faced legal consequences and entered a guilty plea deal requiring her testimony against Peters, recalled Peters visiting her in jail on the day she turned herself in. Peters allegedly reassured her of support and advised keeping silent about the ongoing situation.
Peters’ defense claims she was merely trying to secure data before a scheduled software update and never intended for any unauthorized sharing of that data. They assert that her actions remained within the bounds of her official duties. Conversely, prosecutors depict Peters as excessively focused on electoral discrepancies since connecting with voter fraud activists post-2020 elections and portray her as having plotted with these contacts to document the voting system unlawfully.
Notably, prosecutors allege that during an April 2021 meeting, spurred on by Douglas Frank, a noted election fraud advocate, Peters agreed to allow photography of the hard drive. An individual from California, linked to MyPillow executive Mike Lindell, was supposedly smuggled in disguise into the update room by Peters, using another employee’s credentials without permission.
Peters now faces multiple charges, including attempting to influence public servants, criminal impersonation, and conspiracy among others. Her trial continues and is scheduled to conclude early next week.