PUEBLO, Colo. — Tina Peters, a former Mesa County clerk who was sentenced to nine years behind bars for her role in an election security breach in 2021, was involved in an incident with another inmate at La Vista Correctional Facility over the weekend.
Colorado Department of Corrections spokesperson Alondra Gonzalez-Garcia confirmed to the Scripps News Group that the incident happened on Sunday and nobody was injured.
"The Department can confirm that inmate Tina Peters was involved in an incident with another inmate at the La Vista Correctional Facility on January 18, 2026, in which no one was injured," the spokesperson wrote in an email. "As is the Department’s practice and policy, it promptly conducted an administrative investigation that included reviewing a surveillance recording."
A press release posted to Peters' account on X claims that she "will be locked down completely for 24-72 hours and held in IDO (the hole) for an unknown period of time."
Gonzalez-Garcia said Peters is not in solitary confinement, but she was moved to a different housing unit.
"La Vista Correctional Facility does not utilize solitary confinement," the spokesperson said. "Conducting an investigation and moving one or more of the involved inmates to different housing areas pending the investigation is a standard safety and security procedure for any incarcerated person involved in an incident, pending the investigation's results."
The press release from Peters reads that she was inside a maintenance closet when an inmate approached her and began hitting her. She raised her hands and pushed the inmate away, the release reads.
"She was subsequently handcuffed, shackled, and brought to solitary," the release continues. "Tina was told she is being charged with felony assault for defending herself against an unprovoked attack."
The Colorado DOC's investigation into this incident is ongoing. Gonzalez-Garcia said she cannot confirm anything about additional charges because the department is still working through its internal investigation.
Peters orchestrated a data breach of Mesa County's election equipment after Trump was not re-elected in 2020, spurring him to falsely blame voting machine fraud.
In 2024, Peters was convicted of the following:
- three counts of attempting to influence a public servant
- one count of conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation
- first-degree official misconduct
- violation of duty and failing to comply with the secretary of state
She was sentenced to nine years in prison. She has not denied her actions and has said that everything she did was geared toward the greater good.
This year, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser accused the Trump administration of waging a “revenge campaign” by ending federal programs over the state's refusal to release Peters.
However, Peters was convicted on state, not federal, charges and presidential pardons do not extend to state crimes, according to constitutional experts.
Peters lawyers argue that Trump has a right to pardon people who committed crimes to carry out federal duties, such as preserving election information.
In late December, Peters asked the state appeals court to recognize Trump's pardon of her state convictions as valid.
During a recent one-on-one interview with Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, Scripps News Denver's Colette Bordelon asked about Peters' sentence and if he was considering pardoning her.
"We look at every case individually, and this is somebody who's a first-time offender, nonviolent offense," Polis replied. "Very unusual in our state that they would get that kind of punishment. So, it's something that we look at, along with many other hundreds of people who've applied for clemency."
"There's hundreds of people who have applied for clemency," he continued. "I look at things like sentences that are too long. We look at things like how well people have behaved behind bars. Every year, I've done some and I've told folks in my final year, of course, like many governors, I do intend to really lean into that value of mercy and see what I can do to help give people a second chance."
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