DENVER — The third suspect, who pleaded guilty to a charge related to an incident investigators called a hate crime hoax leading up to the Colorado Springs 2023 Mayoral runoff election, testified to jurors during a trial for the other two suspects Wednesday morning.
Deanna West pleaded guilty in March to one count of “maliciously conveying false information about a threat by means of fire”. West was one of three indicted in the investigation; the other two, Ashley Blackcloud and Derrick Bernard Jr. are on trial this week for their involvement.
West is expected to receive probation in exchange for her plea. During Wednesday’s trial, she admitted to lying to FBI investigators, prior to taking the plea deal, by placing the blame on someone else who had funded Bernard’s business and worked for him.
West told jurors she was working for Bernard’s radio station “Family Flavors the Slide” in 2023, she was also living in the building the station operated in. West said her involvement in the hoax included providing a lighter for Blackcloud to light a wooden cross on fire in front of one of now-Mayor Yemi Mobolade’s campaign signs.
West said she took the video of the cross on fire, the sign had been defaced with a racial slur using red spray paint. She said she also sent an email using a fake name “Angelica Martinez” with attachments of the video and a photo of the burning cross to local media outlets and public officials.
Throughout West’ testimony she said she feared Bernard would retaliate by putting her on the streets if she did not do what he asked.
“I really didn’t have a choice,” West told jurors Wednesday, “anything he wanted done, could result in a threat”’.
West said her phone did not have service, it only worked while connected to Wi-Fi and was instructed by Bernard to not use the Wi-Fi at the radio station to send the email. She and Blackcloud drove to a WalMart to use its public Wi-Fi to send the email. She believed she was asked to use her phone to record the video because it would be less traceable since it was not connected to a service.
Through testimony in court Thursday, it appeared Blackcloud and Bernard did not have their phones with them or on while the incident happened.
West was asked about Bernard’s relationship with Mobolade, she said their relationship was “just business” during the campaign and believed Mobolade distanced himself from Bernard after the incident.
Attorneys showed West surveillance video from the medical campus at Union Blvd. And Fillmore Street in Colorado Springs. It was outside of that campus where investigators say the crime happened.
Data from West’s Google history also showed that she had researched things like how to complain about hate crimes.
Defense attorneys focused on the previous statements West had made to the FBI; she admitted during their questioning she felt pressured by law enforcement and agreed that they were persistent in getting information from her.
West also previously worked with law enforcement officers as a fingerprint analyst in Texas. She said Bernard was suspicious that she could be a spy for law enforcement.
Jurors also heard from a former field photographer who was based at the FBI Denver office, an FBI investigator who works with the Cellular Analysis Service Team, and the FBI Special Agent from Colorado Springs, Ethan Doherty, who investigated the case.
The Special Agent was questioned about footage obtained by surveillance cameras on the medical campus, as well as a traffic camera at the intersection, and messages taken from search warrants from Blackcloud and Bernard’s phones.
Doherty’s testimony is expected to resume Thursday morning, and the prosecution is expected to rest its case.
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