Former Colorado elections clerk Tina Peters is asking a state appeals court to recognize a pardon issued by President Donald Trump as valid and to order her release from prison. In a motion filed Tuesday, her lawyers argued that Trump’s December 5 pardon stripped the court of jurisdiction over her state convictions.
Peters was convicted of state crimes for orchestrating a data breach tied to false claims of voting machine fraud in the 2020 election. Legal experts note that a president’s pardon power does not extend to state offenses, an issue the court is now being asked to resolve.
In the filing, Peters’ attorneys cited President George Washington’s 1795 pardons following the Whiskey Rebellion, arguing they applied to both state and federal convictions. They urged the appeals court to rule swiftly ahead of oral arguments in Peters’ appeal, which are scheduled for Jan. 14.
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