Rob Namnoum
The Cheyenne Mountain boys lacrosse team defeated Holy Family 17-7 on Wednesday afternoon in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs. The Red-Tailed Hawks will play Air Academy on Friday.
Josh Helmuth
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – Many flaunt downtown Colorado Springs as one of the best in the country. It’s certainly grown considerably in recent years. But with that growth has come a shrinking safety, at least that’s the belief of Tina Brookins.
“[He] couldn’t even turn around,” Tina Brookins said to KRDO13 Investigates. [He] thought [he] had been punched or something … when he put his hand back there, he knew.”
A man allegedly stabbed her 20-year-old son, David Brookins, downtown last summer while he was with a group of friends, waiting for a light to change, at Cimarron and Tejon.
Tina Brookins says her son will never be the same.
“He heard somebody shout ‘knife,'” said Tina Brookins. “They were all fleeing. They were all running in [different] directions.”
David nearly died that night, June 20, 2024. It took exploratory surgery to save his life. Emergency surgeons found he was bleeding internally, and David lost a kidney.
“His roommate actually jumped into the street to save himself,” said Tina Brookins. “And my son didn’t have time to even turn around. So he was stabbed in the lower right side directly into the kidney,” she said.
David’s father, John Brookins, praised how quickly police responded.
“My view is the police did a pretty good job that night,” said John Brookins. “And if it wasn’t for the police on scene that helped him and the EMS people that showed up, I don’t know whether you’re [sic] going to [have] made it or not.”
According to Tina Brookins, the stabbing was unprovoked. Police noted it was certainly “random.” It was also brazen.
The alleged stabbing wasn’t too late at night; it was in the 10 o’clock hour. David was with a group of friends in a popular area of downtown near several bars and restaurants. Even more alarming is the fact that David wasn’t the first victim, according to police.
Just 11 days earlier, shortly after 9 pm, police say the same suspect stabbed a man vaping outside Gasoline Alley on North Tejon. But the attacker got away. It wasn’t until David and his friends were attacked that police arrested a 35-year-old named Tommy Lavery, a man with a violent criminal record, previously found guilty of felony assault and domestic violence.
According to arrest records, Lavery was homeless, living out of his car, “targeting citizens in the downtown area of Colorado Springs and stabbing them.” Lavery is currently facing 16 charges, including three counts of attempted murder regarding the stabbings downtown. The third count of attempted murder stems from his alleged attempt to stab one of Brookins’ friends, according to a police report shared with KRDO13.
“My surprise was like, ‘Why was there no warning?'” asked Tina. “Isn’t that an area in the summer that when you know something is happening with all the tourists to be better protected? I mean, have police out there?”
Violent downtown crime since 2020
Last summer’s random stabbings aren’t the first for downtown Colorado Springs.
In 2020, a man claiming to be “Jesus Christ” stabbed eight people while walking the Midland Trail into downtown and was only caught after citizens held him down outside of a bar. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison.
So, what’s crime been like downtown since 2020? KRDO13 Investigates did some digging.
Overall, downtown crime ebbed and flowed in the five years from 2020-2024, averaging 1,058 arrests per year. However, over that same time, felony assault jumped 105 percent.
What is CSPD doing to keep downtown safe?
KRDO13 spoke with police to see what’s being done to prevent violent crime downtown, especially regarding those on the streets who may be suffering a mental health crisis.
CSPD declined an interview, but did send us an in-depth response to our questions via email.
They note in part, “CSPD seeks to address all crimes committed in the downtown area, regardless of anyone’s housing status,” and that they are “continually working to enforce the city ordinance that makes camping illegal across the city.”
We asked CSPD if they track homeless crime. They said they do not track it, saying “it would be a form of profiling.”
How many homeless individuals get arrested?
But the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice does track homeless bookings and inmates. In 2018, they surveyed over 500 inmates in seven Colorado jails, including El Paso County, focusing on the homeless population. The study found 61 percent of inmates were experiencing homelessness within 30 days prior to entering jail, and 64 percent had a mental illness. However, they also noted that homeless inmates had “significantly fewer violent crime charges than non-homeless inmates.”
The DCJ also has a jail population dashboard that tracks inmates experiencing homelessness. In fact, according to the DCJ, El Paso County had 325 homeless individuals jailed in the first quarter of 2025 – nearly 9 percent of the inmate population.
The “HOT” Team
It’s also important to note that CSPD has a small staff of nine officers called the Homeless Outreach Team (HOT).
KRDO13 followed them during a homeless camp cleanup in April.
“Yes we want them to succeed in life. We’ll do everything we can to get them there. But we also have to hold them accountable,” said Sgt. Olav Chaney, who leads the team.
The HOT Team has been around since 2009, saying that homeless camps dramatically increased in Colorado Springs over the summer of 2008. They say they are a compassion-first unit, offering services and resources to all those they come across, while also giving notice before their arrival. If they discover someone with a warrant, they then make an arrest.
This past April’s cleanup was near America the Beautiful Park. It resulted in 60 arrests that included a violent sexual predator from Texas.
In fact, the HOT Team arrested 1,918 people last year, 233 of those were felony arrests. In 2023, they arrested over 2,000 people, roughly 300 of them were felony arrests.
While not all who are homeless are dangerous, Sgt. Chaney noted what they’re up against is in this Youtube video posted last year.
“There’s a lot of crime within the homeless community. There’s a lot of folks, felons in the homeless community that you just have to be careful with,” he says in the video.
What’s not working?
Despite the HOT Team’s efforts, why do they feel violent crime is still a big issue?
Researchers at CU’s Anschutz Medical Campus analyzed involuntary sweeps of homeless camps for four and a half years in Denver. Their study says the sweeps had no effect in reducing crime. In fact, in some cases, rates of violent crime went up following sweeps.
Some feel laws need to be stronger.
CSPD Chief Adrian Vasquez said “poor legislation (at the state level) has made our city streets a more dangerous place for our citizens and officers.”
Chief Vasquez is referencing three measures from this letter in particular: Bail and Bond reform from 2019 (HB19-1225) that made it easier for offenders to be released on no bond for low level offenses, a bill from 2021 (HB21-1280) that requires a court to hold a bond setting hearing within 48 hours after an arrest, and two bills passed in 2021 and 2023 (SB21-271, HB23-1293) police say weakens sentencing for weapons, drug and theft crimes.
Last summer’s stabbings have certainly caught the attention of City Hall.
“I think it’s unacceptable,” said City Councilman Dave Donelson.
Donelson spoke with Tina Brookins and believes more can be done to help public safety downtown, especially regarding homeless crime.
“If you’re homeless and you want help, Colorado Springs should be a good place, and we should help people. If you don’t want help, if you really just want to live in your car on the street, this should be the worst place to live,” said Donelson. “I think the mayor needs to take a stance that this isn’t going to we’re not going to accept this anymore.”
The Springs Rescue Mission’s Stance
It’s already illegal to camp in a public space in Colorado Springs, including near parks and waterways. There’s also a sit-lie ordinance that makes it illegal to sit or lie down on a sidewalk.
KRDO13 went to The Springs Rescue Mission (SRM) to get their take on local laws. After all, they serve over 6,000 homeless people every year. They support the current city ordinances and call laws like them “wise compassion.”
“Some of those things really do help provide the opportunity for engagement to for individuals to be seen,” said Travis Williams, President and CEO of the SRM. “I think that’s probably the best thing that we can do as a community, is how do we help individuals to be seen?” he said.
Williams believes offering shelter or housing is the most effective way to reduce homeless crime, saying allowing people on the streets to isolate only leads to more harm to themselves and others.
“We have to be strong in order to really provide and create the best space for for everyone,” said Williams.
“We find folks who are struggling with severe mental health challenges, severe behavioral health challenges, addiction challenges. And then undergirding that is a lack of relationship, the connectivity,” he added.
The Springs Rescue Mission offers a multitude of services to help people with their physical and mental well-being, on top of everything it takes to find housing and work stability. That being said, they’re also no stranger to those who are dangerous.
Police say an SRM client stabbed and killed a man at the Springs Rescue Mission last summer. Williams says that of the thousands of homeless individuals they see each year, violent crime is still relatively rare.
“I’d say that, for the majority of people that we see, in any given sphere of population, those folks that choose to be malicious are relatively a small population,” said Williams. “It’s just when it happens, it creates a lot of concern.”
Meanwhile, until laws are changed or enforced more strictly, the Brookins family says they’re avoiding downtown Colorado Springs altogether.
“It needs to come from our local government because they want to build. They want to expand,” said Tina Brookins. “You have to make this place safe before you can bring in more people.”
Colorado Springs Police Department’s complete, unedited response
CSPD declined an on-camera interview with KRDO13 regarding downtown homeless crime. However, KRDO13’s Josh Helmuth emailed the department all the questions that would have been asked during the interview and, in response, sent this very lengthy, detailed reply.
Below is the full, unedited, written interview.
What is CSPD doing to combat homeless crime downtown?
CSPD seeks to address all crimes committed in the downtown area, regardless of anyone’s housing status. In the homeless community, there are both victims of crime, those who commit crime, and those who are law-abiding community members.
The HOT team and the DART team have a focus on contacting members of our homeless community, identifying who they are, and offering to connect them with resources available in our community to help them with mental health issues, addiction issues, with the ultimate goal of getting them into housing. Through these contacts, officers do become aware of individuals who are illegally camping or may have arrest warrants and take appropriate action.
CSPD address crimes across the community regardless of the housing status of those who commit the crimes. It is important to remember that our homeless community is also an incredibly vulnerable community and our HOT and DART units not only work to address crime committed downtown, they also work to protect victims of crime who may be homeless too.
The DART team specifically works in a proactive measure, doing walking patrols throughout the downtown area during the day time and advanced patrols during the evenings. They work to cultivate relationships with business owners and community members downtown, including those who are experiencing homelessness.
What does it mean to “clear warrants” during a HOT team cleanup? Are those with warrants jailed or just ticketed and let go immediately?
The recent 2-day effort was a focus to *clean trash from our cities trails and parks. As part of this collaborative clean-up effort, CSPD officers contacted members of the homeless community who were discovered to have warrants for their arrest.
Clearing a warrant means that if there is a warrant for someone’s arrest, and officers contact them and place them in custody and take them to jail, the warrant is then cleared, and that person is then in the judicial system, and not wanted on a warrant.
Under current city code, 9.6.110 – 9.6.111, when an officer contacts an individual found to be illegally camping, if they don’t have a warrant, then it’s a cite and release ticket. We are not allowed to take that individual to jail for a first offense, or second, or third ect. When they are given the ticket, they are also given a court date to appear before a judge on the charge of illegal camping. If that person does not appear, then the city judge can issue a warrant for their arrest. If we encounter that person again and discover the warrant, we can take them to jail, and that warrant issued is “cleared”.
Clearing a warrant can mean a number of things, depending on what the warrant is for and the type of crime that has been committed. For example, many of the warrants our homeless population has are “failure to appear” warrants or lapsed fines from illegal camping violations. These offenses are not jailable offenses – we inform the individual of their lapsed fines or missed court date, assign a new court date, and move on. Other warrants for more serious crimes like violent crimes, drug crimes, etc. may come with jail time. When we are able, we identify those individuals and place them into custody, clearing the warrant.
How does CSPD try to crack down on those illegally camping– even if it means sleeping in their cars at parks? And what does CSPD need in order to improve that enforcement?
CSPD is continually working to enforce the city ordinance that makes camping illegal across the city, and not just in the downtown area. The definition of illegal camping is defined in the city code, 9.6.110 – 9.6.111. CSPD does this through a number of ways like proactive enforcement through our HOT or DART units, responding to community complaints, and more. The important thing to remember, is that illegal camping is not a jailable offense under current city code; it comes with a fine and an order to vacate the premises. The other aspect that should be noted is that illegal camping on publicly owned land is different than camping on private property. With private property, CSPD is able to work with property owners to upgrade the fines/charges to include trespassing. If someone is found “sleeping in their car” and an officer discovers other evidence that indicates camping, then they can be cited for illegal camping.
Is CSPD considering tracking homeless crime, especially downtown?
CSPD is responsible for policing across the city and currently does not track crime rates by any given population or socioeconomic groups of people, including those experiencing homelessness. Doing so would be a form of profiling.
What would CSPD like to see from lawmakers that would make their jobs easier in cracking down on homeless crime?
CSPD enforces city ordinances as they are written by city council. CSPD seeks to enforce the law equally and hold those who commit a crime accountable for their actions, regardless of that person’s housing status.
Recently, Chief Vasquez had this to say regarding how state lawmakers could help policing efforts in reducing violent crime across the board. “In recent years, legislative changes out of the Capitol have significantly limited law enforcement’s ability to hold prolific and violent repeat offenders accountable for serious crimes. These restrictions have impactful and ongoing consequences. The bottom line is that poor legislation (at the state level) has made our city streets a more dangerous place for our citizens and officers, who are committed to doing whatever they are called to do to protect the Colorado Springs community every day.” – Chief Adrian Vasquez
What are CSPD’s staffing numbers? Are you near full staffing or still short of officers? If short, by how many?
CSPD authorized strength is currently 839 sworn officers. As of Tuesday, April 22, CSPD has 802 sworn officers. Staffing numbers are a fluid and complex because, as our city is continually growing, working in concert with the Mayor and city council, the Chief of Police for the foreseeable future will continually be looking to raise our authorized strength number to better protect and serve our city.
Tina Brookins asked why there was no warning regarding the alleged stabbing suspect. Why wasn’t the community warned about the downtown stabbings?
CSPD did warn the community using our usual channels. CSPD uses our public blotter as a way to communicate information about CSPD activity and criminal activity to our community, as well as with our media partners who we hope will amplify the information appropriately.
The first stabbing on June 9 – which our investigation indicates was tied to the June 20 stabbing, was posted on our public blotter to make our news partners and community members aware of the June 9 stabbing in the downtown area.
CSPD notified the community with the relevant information we had at the time of June 9, regarding the first stabbing on the blotter. The investigation was continuing on the 20th of June, when the same officers who responded to the June 9 stabbing, heard the information over the radio about the June 21 stabbing in the down town area, and responded and quickly and were able to identify that the suspect from the June 20 stabbing may have been linked to the June 9 stabbing and were able to take quick action, which allowed officers to located the suspect that night and take him into custody.
Mackenzie Stafford
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – The Colorado Senate has passed HB25-1312, Legal Protections for Transgender Individuals. If signed into law, the bill would establish new protections for transgender Coloradoans.
The House bill is also known as the “Kelly Loving Act,” named after a Transgender woman who was killed in the 2022 Club Q shooting. Kelly Loving was at the nightclub celebrating her birthday, which had happened just a few days prior.
READ MORE: Colorado bill honoring Club Q shooting victim seeks to expand protections for transgender people
HB25-1312 now sits on Governor Polis’s desk. If he signs the bill, multiple sections would go into effect immediately.
Protections that would immediately go into effect include expanding the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act to include “misgendering” and “deadnaming” as acts of discrimination.
It would also immediately grant transgender Coloradoans the ability to change their name on marriage licenses, allowing the state to issue a new license while essentially wiping the old one from the system.
However, sections regarding the change of an individual’s sex designation on their license, learner’s permit, or identification documents wouldn’t go into effect on Oct. 1, 2026. Those changes would allow a person to change their sex designation up to three times before having to get a court order indicating that a sex designation change is required. Current law allows only one change before requiring a court order.
One of the biggest points of contention for the bill has been how it will impact Colorado school districts, as it would require each district to adopt a “safe school plan.”
That would require districts to update their codes of conduct to include fair equal treatment of all students, adopt a dress code that lets students choose any approved clothing option regardless of gender, and require a student’s chosen name to be used.
Jason Jorgenson, a local parent and Colorado Springs School District 11 board member, says the bill is an example of governmental overreach and could “pit schools against parents.”
“My concern is that we’re going to have staff, support staff, counselors that are going to be having to walk this fine line of what can I do here?” Jorgenson said.
He’s calling on Gov. Polis to reconsider the text and possibly split the sections into separate bills. As for the Kelly Loving Act, he’s asking the governor to veto the bill.
“Ultimately, when parents see that their children are not going to be as safe or are going to be having the ability to do things that they may or may not know about, that right there should cause us to pause and to say, okay, what is this Bill really trying to do? Is it about protecting, or is it really just moving more power into the state’s hands and away from parents? And I think that’s my main concern,” Jorgenson said.
Supporters of the bill, like advocate Edward Sanders, say they are thrilled to see it making its way through the state legislature.
“It’s very important, especially for the trans children, because, unfortunately, parents are not supportive most of the time. And, I consider that abusive; it’s not right. Someone has to step in for these kids,” Sanders said. “Otherwise, as you talk to trans people all the time who are older and they describe the abuse, the nonsupport that they got, and the trauma that left them in their adult life. We want to prevent that for these kids and for us parents actually to support their children and give them the support that they need.”
Sanders has been an advocate for the bill and greater trans rights since the tragedy at Club Q, where he met the bill’s namesake, Kelly Loving.
“She was standing next to me at the bar that night, and we all got shot together and fell together, and she wasn’t breathing very well, and we tried to help her,” recounted Sanders.
Sanders says he survived by centimeters, a bullet just grazing his ribs. He says if that didn’t happen, he “would be in Heaven” with Kelly right now.
“She was just a light to the community. Everybody went to her with their problems and concerns. And same as Daniel [Aston], the bartender that night. He was the same way. Everybody went to him with their questions and concerns, and he was just open to talk and everything. Same with Kelly,” remembered Sanders.
Now, Sanders has taken up Loving’s mission as a trans advocate and is speaking up for others in the community in her honor.
“If we can do anything, especially in Colorado now, to educate and enlighten these people, maybe they will change. That’s my hope. And I hope that other states will pick this up and do the same. Kelly is a shining example of a wonderful trans person who was taken too soon,” Sanders said.
It’s now in Gov. Polis’ hands to determine whether the Kelly Loving Act will be signed into state law.
“Governor Polis appreciates the work of the bill sponsors and all the advocates involved in the bill’s progression, especially in removing the controversial changes to family law from the bill, and will review the final version when it reaches his desk,” a spokesperson for the Governor’s Office said.
Celeste Springer
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) – An effort to recall Pueblo Mayor Heather Graham has failed after petitioners did not gather enough signatures, according to the City of Pueblo.
One of the major reasons for the recall effort stemmed from a proposal for a grocery tax.
Mayor Heather Graham told KRDO13 at the beginning of the year that the City of Pueblo is facing an $8.5 million deficit in the 2025 budget. Officials considered the tax, also called the Food Consumption Tax, which could add anywhere from $1 to $7.40 to an average $200 grocery bill.
“It came to a head with the grocery tax or the proposed grocery tax, because people are upset that it was even being entertained, especially in the socioeconomic climate that we have right now,” Jason Ford, who spearheaded the recall effort, told KRDO13 in an interview in March.
A statement from Mayor Graham can be read below:
“From the very beginning of this recall election petition effort, I have repeatedly told the public that I believe this effort is laughable. The 11 accusations outlined on the petition do not even include issues that are directly linked to the responsibility of the Mayor. Then as the 60 days to gather signatures has continued, we have seen the petitioners falsely coerce people to sign to stop the “Graham Grocery Tax,” which isn’t even a real ballot initiative or tax in effect.
What these petitioners fail to realize is how municipal government even operates in the first place—let alone my role as Mayor. Criticism is welcome and I fully understand that I will not make all citizens happy, however I have continued to make good on my campaign promises which include addressing crime and making this community safer, beautifying Pueblo and increasing economic development.
At 15 months into my term, I can confidently say I am still fully committed to these three principles. I believe our community will thrive as a result of the hard work of our employees, commitment to our citizens and our improvement that will be seen for years to come. I remain committed as the Mayor of Pueblo no matter the circumstances, a recall attempt will not affect my focus on the citizens and the future of Pueblo.”
-Mayor Heather Graham
Scott Harrison
WOODLAND PARK, Colo. (KRDO) — Roads remained wet in Teller County but not icy and slick as they were Tuesday; light snowflakes fell during the early morning hours Wednesday and intensified at midday.
There’s still a lot of plowing activity on sidewalks, neighborhood streets and parking lots, even though much of the accumulated snow continues to melt.
Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) plows continued to patrol US 24 and other state highways in the area; there’s very little snow to remove except for along the edges of roads.
As of 7 a.m. Wednesday, authorities had reported no issues such as downed tree limbs from the weight of the heavy, wet snow.
However, several vehicles remained along US 24 after sliding off in the slick driving conditions Tuesday.
Perhaps the weight of the snow is why few people were seen shoveling Wednesday; homeowner Lynn Miller made the job easier with her snow blower.
“You have to do it just a little bit at a time, or you’ll clog the blower up,” she explained. “But I wasn’t going to come out here and shovel this, or you’d be talking to the ambulance drivers.”
Shirley Logan lives 18 miles away in Florissant, and felt better about driving to Woodland Park Wednesday.
“From Divide all the way into Woodland, it was terrifying yesterday,.” she recalled. “I was thinking that I wouldn’t make this trip today. But you all reported that the roads are clear, so I’m going to Aurora.”
Gary Sluder has lived in the area for 35 years, and said that he stayed home during the storm.
“It was the kind of day that’s good for doing woodworking in my garage,” he said. “I don’t think this is the end of the snow yet. We usually get our last storm around the second week of June. But we needed this. We need the moisture.”
Bradley Davis
PUEBLO WEST, Colo. (KRDO) – 46-year-old Frank Sagona has a strong case for best pull up master in the world. He’s done millions of them over the last 16 years. He’s done most of those at his home in Pueblo and gym in Pueblo West.
Sagona has two standing Guinness World Records: 1010 chin ups in one hour, and 5049 pull ups in eight hours.
He has the plaques for three others he used to hold. He’s waiting on verification for two more and is training for his first attempt at the “most pull ups in one hour” record of 1131.
Since Sagona started 16 years ago, he estimates he’s done over 2 million pull ups and chin ups and almost 3.5 million push ups.
Tune into Good Morning Colorado to see KRDO13’s Bradley Davis get up on the pull up bar with Frank to take us inside his workout routine and find out the “why” behind his world record.
Rob Namnoum
The Pueblo West boys lacrosse team went up against Lutheran in the Class 4A playoffs on Tuesday night. The Cyclones lost 11-6.
Rob Namnoum
The Cheyenne Mountain girls lacrosse team won their first round Class 4A playoff game against Summit 17-7 on Tuesday afternoon. They will play Golden on Thursday.
Bart Bedsole
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) – The first batch of election results show voters overwhelming don’t support ending Pueblo’s agreement with Black Hills Energy and forming a separate utility.
Ballot Question 2A asked residents, “Should the City of Pueblo cancel its franchise agreement with Black Hills Colorado Electric, LLC and acquire the generation, transmission and distribution assets of Black Hills Colorado Elections, LLC, if determined feasible?”
With roughly 17,500 ballots counted, just over 79% have voted “no”.
It’s unclear how many total ballots were submitted.
In recent weeks, both the City of Pueblo and Black Hills Energy have released separate studies suggesting how much the acquisition by the city would cost, and whether it was financially feasible.
In a statement following the release of the first batch of results, Black Hills Energy said they were “delighted” that Pueblo voters were not in support of ending the agreement.
“Voters know the city’s own study showed that a billion-dollar takeover in Pueblo simply isn’t feasible, and there’s no practical path for an estimated $4 billion region-wide takeover effort, which would be highly complex and unlikely to succeed,” the statement read in part.
Stay with KRDO13 for continuing coverage of Tuesday’s election.
Michael Logerwell
EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – In the wake of President Donald Trump’s comments claiming former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters is a “Political Prisoner” and calling for her immediate release, KRDO13 pressed local leaders about their reaction to the president’s comments.
Related: Trump’s DOJ to review Tina Peters’ conviction in Colorado election tampering case
In October 2024, Mesa County Judge Matthew Barrett sentenced Peters to serve nine years behind bars after a jury found her guilty in a data-breach scheme aimed at proving widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election.
She is currently incarcerated at the La Vista Correctional Facility.
KRDO13 reached out to many elected officials and political leaders in Southern Colorado and on the Western Slope for their reaction to President Trump’s comments.
“It’s a joke,” El Paso County Democrat Chair John Jarrell said. “I do feel bad for Tina that she bought into Trump’s lies and got so involved that she committed all these crimes. But, no, she was, she had a jury of her peers.”
The local GOP Chair took a different stance.
“[We’re] excited. We’ve been waiting for some action because we recognize it was going to probably take some federal action in order to see her freed,” Ken Davis, El Paso GOP Chair, said.
Davis stopped short of saying Peters was a “hostage,” as the president framed the situation, but he did take issue with the sentence handed down by Judge Barrett.
“By the letter of [the] law, she broke the law. And they found her guilty of breaking the law, so I wouldn’t necessarily blame those in Mesa County,” Davis said. “But I do think the judge then overreached with his sentencing.”
In a statement, Mesa County District Attorney Dan Rubinstein (R) said Peters’ conviction was not politically motivated.
“Nothing about the prosecution of Ms. Peters was politically motivated. In one of the most conservative jurisdictions in Colorado, the same voters who elected Ms. Peters, also elected the Republican District Attorney who handled the prosecution, and the all-Republican Board of County Commissioners who unanimously requested the prosecution of Ms. Peters on behalf of the Mesa County citizens which she victimized. Ms. Peters was indicted by a grand jury of her peers, and convicted at trial by the jury of her peers that she selected.”
At the state level, Attorney General Phil Weiser (D) and Secretary of State Jena Griswold (D) pushed back on the President’s claims that Peters was a political prisoner.
“Tina Peters is a criminal who compromised her own voting equipment to try to prove Trump’s Big Lie,” Griswold said in a statement. “Trump is weaponizing the Department of Justice. We cannot allow him to rewrite history or use his lies to create two tiers of justice for the American people.”
“Tina Peters is in prison because of her own actions. A grand jury indicted her and a trial jury found her guilty of breaking Colorado’s criminal laws,” Weiser said. “No one is above the law. The Colorado Attorney General’s Office will continue to defend this criminal conviction in post-conviction proceedings and on appeal. We are firm in pursuing justice for the people of the state of Colorado, protecting free and fair elections, and standing up for the rule of law.”
Tina Peters’ photo from the Department of Corrections.
As she was convicted of state crimes, President Trump cannot pardon Peters; only Colorado Gov. Jared Polis would have the power to issue a pardon.
According to the Department of Corrections, Peters’ next parole hearing date is December 2028. If Peters were to serve out her entire term, she would be released on May 11, 2033.
KRDO13 Investigates reached out to Peters’ most recent attorney, Michael Edminster, via email. He did not return our request by our deadline.
