Tina Peters tried hijacking her election data breach trial into a conspiracy theory 'circus' that should not be reheard
Source: Law & Crime
Jan 15th, 2026, 2:55 pm
A Colorado appeals panel on Wednesday dissected whether the data breach trial for Tina Peters, the first election official found guilty of a felony in connection with 2020 election conspiracy theories, was hijacked by election conspiracy theories and turned into an unconstitutional "circus" that deserves to be reheard.
Peters was convicted in August of seven counts of engaging in a security breach related to unauthorized access to voting machines while she worked as a county clerk in Mesa County, Colorado. In October — after a marathon hearing in which Peters repeatedly expressed defiance and brought up conspiracy theories — the 70-year-old was sentenced to nine years in state prison for her felony offenses.
On Wednesday, Colorado Court of Appeals judges Craig R. Welling, Ted C. Tow III, and Lino Lipinsky probed Senior Assistant Attorney General Lisa Michaels and Peters' attorneys on whether certain trial factors played an unconstitutional role in the case.
This included comments made at Peters' sentencing by the judge on her conspiracy beliefs and whether Peters was given the chance to properly present a "complete defense" after the court limited the admission of "evidence" related to alleged election conspiracies Peters believed played a role in her intent to violate security protocols. The court did this, according to Michaels, because it felt the evidence would turn Peters' prosecution into a "mini-trial," per her testimony.
Read more: https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/she-had-a-slideshow-tina-peters-tried-hijacking-her-election-data-breach-trial-into-a-conspiracy-theory-circus-that-should-not-be-reheard-state-tells-appeals-panel/
Full headline: 'She had a slideshow': Tina Peters tried hijacking her election data breach trial into a conspiracy theory 'circus' that should not be reheard, state tells appeals panel
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