Colorado looking into threats on judge after Tina Peters sentenced in election case

Colorado court administrators are investigating threats against a district court judge and its staff after a former Colorado county clerk Tina Peters was sentenced this week in an election case. 

District Court Judge Matthew Barrett sentenced Peters to nine years in prison on Thursday and disparaged her push of discredited claims about rigged voting machines in the 2020 presidential election. After the sentencing, the court staff started receiving both praise and threats, prompting the courthouse to add security.

“The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office is investigating multiple threats made to courthouse staff following the trial verdict on Thursday,” Mesa County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Wendy Likes told The Hill in a written statement. 

“Our Intel Unit thoroughly vets any threats; any viable threat will be taken seriously,” Likes added. “Extra security measures are being taken to ensure the safety of those employees.” 

The nature of these episodes remains unclear. 

Peters was found guilty of four felonies in August following a criminal trial. The prosecutors argued that she stole a security badge of a county employee to assist a man connected to MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell to gain access to the county voting system — all in an effort to support Lindell’s false conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. 

Peters, a one-time hero of election deniers, became “fixated” on voting problems after meshing with those questioning the validity of the election, according to prosecutors.

In 2022, Peters lost her primary in August 2022 to retain her position.

“It’s just more lies,” the judge said as he critiqued Peters this week. “No objective person believes them. No — at the end of the day, you cared about the jets, the podcasts and people flying with you.”

Updated at 2:26 p.m. ET