Tina Peters, Mesa County clerk, and deputy Belinda Knisley indicted in election system breach investigation

A Mesa County grand jury returned 10 criminal counts against Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Tina Peters and six counts against Deputy Clerk Belinda Knisley in its investigation over a potential election equipment security breach.

The grand jury was empaneled at the end of January to investigate the election equipment tampering and official misconduct allegations and returned its findings Tuesday evening.

Peters, a Republican, has been charged with three counts of attempting to influence a public servant, criminal impersonation, two counts of conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation and identity theft, all felonies, according to the Mesa County District Attorney’s Office. She is also charged with first-degree official misconduct, violation of duty and failing to comply with the secretary of state, all misdemeanors.

Knisley was charged with three counts of attempting to influence a public servant, conspiracy to commit attempting to influence a public servant, all felonies, and misdemeanors violation of duty and failing to comply with the secretary of state.

Authorities have issued warrants for Peters’ and Knisley’s arrests.

These charges stem from local, state and federal investigations launched into the potential breach after the secretary of state sued Peters, a 2020 election denier, and Knisley over allegedly allowing an unauthorized man access to make copies of voting equipment servers. Passwords from the equipment were later posted online by Ron Watkins, a leading figure in the QAnon conspiracy theory.

The indictment documents state that beginning in April 2021 before the election equipment’s trusted build process — a routine update for security vulnerabilities — Peters and Knisley “devised and executed a deceptive scheme which was designed to influence public servants, breach security protocols, exceed permissible access to voting equipment, and set in motion the eventual distribution of confidential information to unauthorized people.”

“Furthermore, these defendants, without permission or lawful authorization, also used the name and personal identifying information of Gerald ‘Jerry’ Wood to further their criminal scheme. This unlawful use of Mr. Wood’s identity by Tina Peters and Belinda Knisley also subjected Mr. Wood to various forms of liability and criminal exposure,” the indictment stated. Wood was named as the unauthorized person who was allegedly given access to the county’s secure elections area.

In October, a judge also barred Peters and Knisley from overseeing the 2021 election, and after Peters refused to follow new protocols, the secretary of state sued her again to stop her from overseeing the 2022 election. Peters is also under investigation by the state’s independent ethics committee, is facing campaign finance complaints in the Colorado Office of Administrative Courts and was cited over an allegation of contempt of court in another criminal case.

Knisley is facing charges of burglary and a cybercrime after she allegedly entered the county offices during a suspension in an unrelated cases and has pleaded not guilty to those charges.

A joint statement from the DA Dan Rubinstein and Attorney General Phil Weiser said a grand jury of citizens, after seeing the evidence, concluded that there was probable cause for the charges.

“This investigation is ongoing, and other defendants may be charged as we learn more information,” they said. “We remind everyone that these are allegations at this point and that they are presumed innocent until proven guilty.”

Peters’ defense fund, which she previously said was also raising money for Knisley, did not return a request for comment Wednesday morning, and neither did her campaign.

Secretary of State Jena Griswold, a Democrat, said in a statement that every Coloradan, regardless of party, has the right to make their voice heard in accessible and secure elections.

“To do that, we need election administrators who are committed to following the law and election rules,” Griswold said. “Officials tasked with carrying out elections do so in public trust and must be held accountable when they abuse their power or position.”

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Update 10:55 a.m.: Due to an error by the DA’s Office in the indictment announcement, an earlier version of this story had an inaccurate number of counts against Mesa County clerk Tina Peters. She is facing 10 criminal counts.

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