Colorado Governor Overruled His Own Clemency Board to Release Tina Peters

Months before Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado freed the felonious election denier Tina Peters from prison, his own clemency board voted unanimously — twice — to reject her bid for early release, according to two of the board’s members.

The first vote, taken under a cloak of secrecy, came in January, when the board reviewed Ms. Peters’s application during one of its meetings. At those gatherings, board members wrestle with some of the state’s toughest criminal cases, poring over handwritten pleas from convicted killers and others serving life sentences.

A month later, the board got an unusual request from the Democratic governor’s office, which was under enormous political pressure from President Trump to free Ms. Peters, two board members said — take a second look.

The clemency board obliged, but again, its vote was a unanimous no.



https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/18/us/politics/colorado-clemency-board-tina-peters.html