After elections, Mesa County uses a risk-limiting audit procedure to ensure that the results on paper ballots match the results reported by tabulation machines.[23]
The audit process involves a bipartisan group of staff and volunteers
to randomly select a number of paper ballots and manually check those
results against the results issued by a tabulation machine.[23][24]
On November 19, 2020, Peters signed off on the results of the
risk-limiting audit for Mesa County, stating there were no issues or
discrepancies with the results of the 2020 election in the county.[24][25]
Despite signing documents that agreed there were no discrepancies
in the election results for the county, Peters met with individuals who
promoted the false claim that the 2020 election was illegitimate.[26] In the months following the 2020 election, she allowed an unauthorized person to access the Mesa County's Dominion electronic voting machines and to copy the hard drives of those machines.[27]
In 2024, Peters was convicted in Colorado's 21st judicial district
on felony charges relating to this unauthorized access and was
sentenced to nine years in prison. She was also ordered to pay thousands
of dollars in fines.[28] She was immediately taken into custody.[29]
Granting unauthorized access to voting machines
In May 2021, Peters ordered the surveillance cameras
monitoring the voting machines in the clerk's office to be turned off,
and that they would be reactivated in advance of the next election in
August 2021, according to an email sent by Mesa County Deputy Clerk
Belinda Knisley and later cited in evidence by Colorado Secretary of
State Jena Griswold.[30][31]
Peters later stated that no law or election rule required security
cameras that monitor election equipment to operate continuously; at
minimum, they must be on 60 days before an election and 30 days
afterward. Mesa County Commissioner Janet Rowland stated that Peters had
not turned off the cameras after any of the eight previous elections
that Peters had overseen since 2018.[32]
In the days following her order to turn off the surveillance
cameras, Peters allowed Conan Hayes, co-founder of the clothing company RVCA and proponent of QAnon conspiracy theories,[33]
to access the room where Mesa County's electronic voting machines were
stored and to copy sensitive information from those machines.[34]
Days later, Peters allowed Hayes to be present for a software update to
the voting machines and to record video of the update taking place.[35]
Peters' chief aide, former deputy clerk Belinda Knisley, described
Hayes as a "mystery man," and said that Peters told her she brought him
in to access files from the voting machines because Peters "was afraid
the Colorado Secretary of State's office was going to remove them."[36]
During the time Hayes was present, he used a staff access badge for Gerald Wood,[37] and according to Griswold, Peters misled her staff by saying "Wood" was an employee and had been background-checked.[31]
Phone records confirmed that Hayes had traveled to the area during the
time of the software update. His hotel room was paid for by Sherronna
Bishop, then-campaign manager for Boebert.[34] Peters later said that she, Bishop, Hayes, and United States Representative Lauren Boebert had dinner together on May 24.[38]
Publication of stolen voting machine data
In August 2021, Ron Watkins, conspiracy theorist and site administrator of the imageboard website 8kun,
published computer files associated with the Mesa County election
system, including "forensic images of Mesa County's voting machines
along with video of [a software] update and partially blurred passwords"
on a Telegram channel.[37][39][32][40] The Gateway Pundit also published passwords, video, and data associated with the Mesa County election system.[37]
Dominion, the company that made Mesa County's voting machines,
identified the leaked passwords as belonging to the machines in Mesa
County.[24]
The company alerted the state, and Griswold ordered an inspection of
the county's voting equipment the following day and prohibited anyone
from touching the equipment without her written permission. The order
stated: "The posted images depict the BIOS
passwords specific to the individual hardware stations of Mesa County's
voting system. These passwords can only be used physically at a voting
system at the Mesa County Clerk's Office."[41] Mesa County District Attorney Dan Rubinstein assigned an investigator to look into the security breach.[31]
On August 10, Colorado Department of State staff accessed the county
election equipment and some records at the Mesa County Clerk and
Recorder's office. They found security vulnerabilities in the servers
and boot settings.[42][43]
Peters described the search as a "raid" and, saying that her chief
deputy had not been allowed to be present, said: "I don't know what they
did, but I can tell you I don't trust them."[44]
A day after state officials investigated the voting machines in
Mesa County, Peters attended a 2020 election conspiracy conference held
by Mike Lindell, CEO of MyPillow and conspiracy theorist.[40]
During the conference, Ron Watkins presented via livestream the
computer files associated with the Mesa County election system he had
shared on Telegram previously.[40]
He claimed, "the files were from hard drives taken 'without
authorization' from Peters' office," which he said his lawyer instructed
him to disclose.
At the conference, Peters denied the files had come from her office,[40] and if they had, questioned if the leak of data was a problem. She claimed:
If
those passwords were compromised, why can't they just change them? How
many of you have had to change your email password before? Is that a big
deal? You just change it. We're not in the middle of an election right
now... It's not like some secret people came and did something
nefarious.[37]
Decertification of compromised voting machines
On August 12, 2021, Griswold issued Election Order 2021-02 (EO-02),
which announced the decertification of the county's voting equipment,
which would have to be replaced before the November election unless Mesa
County chose to conduct a hand count of ballots. Additionally, Griswold
announced that Peters could no longer oversee the 2021 election.[31][45]
On August 17, 2021, the FBI
investigated the alleged Mesa County election equipment breach
alongside the Colorado Department of State's and County Treasurer's
offices.[37]
Peters was not present when officials went to meet Peters and inspect
the equipment. Griswold issued a third Election Order, 2021-03 (EO-03),
stating that Peters was in hiding and not complying, and as such, Mesa
County Treasurer and former Clerk and Recorder Sheila Reiner was
permitted to take control of the Mesa County elections as Election
Supervisor. Griswold appointed her Republican predecessor, former
Colorado Secretary of State Wayne Williams, as the Designated Election Official.[43][30] The U.S. Cyber Security and Infrastructure Security Agency
(CISA) looked into the alleged breach and determined that the incident
did not risk the integrity of elections in either the state or the
country, according to the secretary of state's office.[37] On August 19, 2021, MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell told Vice News in an interview that Peters was "holed up" in a safe house provided by him for her protection.[46] A member of Lindell's own security team leaked the location, so she was moved to another unknown location.[47] On August 21, 2021, a support rally was held for Peters in Mesa County; her supporters said there had been a security breach.[48]
On August 24, 2021, the all-Republican Mesa County Board of
County Commissioners voted unanimously to replace 41 compromised pieces
of election equipment with new equipment also from Dominion Voting Systems. Thirty-four county residents spoke to the commission before the vote, all opposing the Dominion contract.[47]
The commissioners extended the service agreement for eight years (to
2029) and purchased a "Dominion Ballot Audit Review" for $3,300 per
election, for a total cost of $825,281. The agreement with Dominion
included a promise that the company would not file a civil lawsuit
against the county over defamatory remarks allegedly made by Peters.[31][49]
Removal from overseeing 2021 election
On August 30, Griswold filed a lawsuit to prevent Peters from
overseeing the 2021 election, because the authority to terminate Peters
lay with the courts and not with her.[50] The county commissioners voted to reject Reiner and instead appointed Williams to oversee Mesa County elections.[51]
On August 23, 2021, Mesa County Human Resources Director Brenda
Moore suspended Deputy Clerk Belinda Knisley with pay due to accusations
of unprofessional behavior and hostile work environment.[52] Mesa County Elections Manager Sandra Brown was also suspended.[53]
On August 25, Knisley entered the Clerk and Recorder's office, from
which she had been barred, and tried to use Peters' credentials to print
documents. She surrendered on September 1 to be charged with felony
burglary and misdemeanor cybercrimes and was released on a personal recognizance bond.[53][11]
On September 17, 2021, Peters gave the county commissioners an
83-page report titled "Forensic Examination and Analysis" prepared by
cyber forensic expert Doug Gould. The report included images of server
hard drives and attempted to show that some files were deleted or
replaced with other files; according to the report, the "trusted build"[54][55]
deleted a total of 28,989 log files but did not state the purpose of
the files or whether they were supposed to be replaced with new files as
part of a software upgrade. It concluded: "Further investigation is
required to determine the full scope of non-compliance with legal
mandates for voting systems and election records, and whether the
non-compliance is deliberate or simply negligent."[56]
Griswold's office responded, "Prior to the routine upgrade to voting
equipment called the 'trusted build', counties are directed to save to
external media all data necessary to completely audit and verify a prior
election. This data may be restored to the EMS after the trusted build.
No court has ever held that voting system event logs are election
records within the meaning of 52 U.S.C. § 20701."[56]
On September 18, in response to a court filing to remove her from
overseeing the next election, Peters stated that there had been an
unauthorized person and non-employee present at the annual system
upgrade but that Peters had been within her legal right to allow that
person to be present.[11]
On October 13, 2021, Mesa County District Court Judge Valerie Robinson
ruled that Peters and Knisley had allowed a breach in the county's
election system during a major software update and, therefore, were
barred from supervising the November election.[57] Peters said she would appeal, but on October 21, the Colorado Supreme Court declined to take up her appeal.[58]
On November 9, Mesa County Election Director Brandi Bantz fired
Sandra Brown, who said she would file a lawsuit against the county for
improper termination.[52][59]
On the evening of November 16, 2021, law enforcement authorities
executed search warrants on the homes of Peters, Sherronna Bishop, and
two others as part of the criminal investigation. Peters claimed on TV
that the agents had broken down the door of one residence with a
battering ram, but they denied this. No arrests were made.[60]
On February 7, 2022, during a hearing for Knisley, Peters was seen video recording the proceedings on her iPad. She was charged with contempt of court,[61] though this charge was later overturned on appeal.[62]
When investigators tried the following day to execute a search warrant
to seize her iPad with the video footage, Peters tried to hide the iPad
and repeatedly said that she could not provide the password to the iPad
because it belonged not to her but to a "Tammy Bailey." She was
additionally charged with obstructing government operations and
obstructing a peace officer.[63]
Indictment, trial and conviction
Peters was indicted
on March 9, 2022, on 13 counts: three counts of attempting to influence
a public servant (class 4 felonies), two counts of conspiracy to commit
attempting to influence a public servant (class 5 felonies),
first-degree official misconduct (a class 2 misdemeanor), violation of
duty (a misdemeanor), failing to comply with the secretary of state (a
misdemeanor), obstruction, contempt of court, criminal impersonation,
and identity theft of Gerald Wood.[64][65] She was reported to have "sought to prove that widespread fraud had occurred in the state's 2020 presidential election",[19][66][67]
Knisley was indicted alongside Peters, on six counts: attempt to
influence a public servant, conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation,
violation of duty, and failure to comply with the requirements of the
Secretary of State.[64]
Despite having acknowledged in earlier court appearances that a non-employee had been present,[11] she claimed that Gerald Wood had perjured himself on the stand when he denied being at the unauthorized breach.[65] Conan Hayes admitted to using Wood's badge, and Patrick M. Byrne told The New York Times that Hayes was on his payroll and had used FaceTime
with him from inside Mesa County election offices saying a government
official invited him to make backup copies of machines. Byrne told the Times he could see Hayes was wearing "someone else's" identification badge.[68] Peters was barred from supervising local elections in 2022 as well.[19][69][18]
Three ethics complaints have also been filed against Peters. On
August 16, 2021, she was alleged to have accepted plane rides and other
gifts from Mike Lindell in excess of the state gift limit of $65.[70][71]
In April 2022, at an appearance with Peters, Lindell disclosed having
personally donated an amount in the $200,000 to $800,000 range to her
legal defense fund and campaign.[72]
As this was also in apparent violation of the $65 state limit, the
Colorado ethics commission approved a second ethics complaint that had
been made in January 2022 and investigated Peters' elections fund.[73][70][71] Peters denied prior knowledge,[74] despite previously directing supporters to Lindell's legal defense fund.[72]
On May 17, 2022, the commission found a third ethics complaint filed on
May 9 non-frivolous. This complaint was based on Lindell's comments at
an "Election Truth Rally" and alleged that Peters knew of these
payments, as evidenced by recorded comments she made at the rally.[75][76]
In July 2022, a warrant was issued for Peters' arrest after she
traveled out of state without the required court permission to appear at
another Lindell event in Las Vegas.[77]
Peters claimed not to know of the restriction, her three attorneys
claimed not to have told her, and the arrest order was canceled;[78]
but later the same month, a second warrant for her arrest was issued
because she emailed multiple county clerk's offices informing them that
she was seeking a recount with hand counting, violating the bond
conditions of her arrest for election machine tampering. Peters turned
herself in, was arrested, was allowed to repost bond, and was again
released.[79]
County Elections Manager Sandra Brown also turned herself in for arrest
on July 11, 2022, on an affidavit naming her in a conspiracy to commit
criminal impersonation and attempt to influence a public servant. She
was released from custody after posting a personal recognizance bond.[80]
Peters claimed in a July 29 press release that El Paso County's
logic and accuracy test (LAT) failed "in a spectacular fashion, with
over a 50% error rate out of the 4,000+ ballots tested."[81][82]
The release also claimed that "Griswold did not provide reasonable
advance notice of the LAT to the Tina Peters Campaign, thereby denying
them their right to have an [sic] appointed watchers present during the test," however, the Colorado Springs Gazette showed representatives for Peters' campaign present at the test.[83] Peters filed suit challenging methods used in the recount, and on August 6, 2022, that suit was dismissed.[84]
On August 7, 2022, Peters pled not guilty to all charges related
to the alleged election machine tampering, and a trial was set for March
2023.[85] On August 20, 2022, Peters and Sherronna Bishop appeared in a documentary released by Mike Lindell titled "[S]election Code".[86][87][88]
On August 25, 2022, Knisley pled guilty to three misdemeanor
counts of trespass, official misconduct, and violation of duty, having
cut a plea deal with prosecutors to keep her out of prison in exchange
for testifying against Peters and others in the case. Court documents
say Knisley admitted she knew about and participated in a "scheme with
Tina Peters and other identified people to deceive public servants from
both the Colorado Secretary of State's Office and Mesa County."[89]
The document continues to state, "This scheme, which was significantly
directed by Tina Peters, ultimately permitted an unauthorized individual
to gain access to secure areas inside the Mesa County Clerk and
Recorder's Office so that this person – fraudulently held out to be
improperly titled as Gerald Wood, but who was later identified to
actually be Conan Hayes – could participate in Mesa County's trusted
build with Tina Peters and Sandra Brown."[90]
On November 30, 2022, Sandra Brown pled guilty to attempting to
influence a public servant, a felony, and official misconduct, a
misdemeanor, as part of a plea agreement that required her to testify
against Tina Peters and her performance on the witness stand would play a
factor in her eventual sentencing. Brown's deal, which 21st Judicial
District Judge Matthew Barrett did not decide whether to accept until
sentencing, would require her to serve up to 30 days in jail for the
misdemeanor and would allow the felony conviction to be erased after two
years if she complied with conditions he sets, such as requiring
community service, for those two years. "There were things going on that
I should have questioned and I didn't," Brown told Judge Barrett.[91]
In March 2023, Peters received a Mesa County jury trial for
charges related to her recording the court proceedings of Knisley with
an iPad and for obstructing investigators who tried to execute a search
warrant to seize her iPad with the video footage the next day. During
the trial, testimony and statements from Peters' attorney revealed that
Tammy Bailey was an alias that Peters had created for herself; during
the time of the search warrant, Peters had repeatedly told investigators
that the iPad did not belong to her and that she could not provide the
password because it belonged to someone else named Tammy Bailey. The
jury ultimately convicted her on a misdemeanor charge of obstruction of
government operations but acquitted her on the charge that she
obstructed a peace officer.[92][63]
The court sentenced Peters to four months of house arrest for this
misdemeanor, during which she was ordered to wear an ankle monitor,
fined $786.35, and ordered to perform 120 hours of community service,
which she planned to appeal.[93][94]
Sandra Brown began her 30-day sentence for the misdemeanor of
official misconduct. Brown's deal would allow her felony conviction of
attempting to influence a public servant to be expunged after two years
if she complied with the conditions set by Judge Barrett.[95]
On May 5, 2023, Peters was held in contempt of court for lying to
Judge Barrett about recording court proceedings involving Knisley using
her iPad on February 7, 2022. Eagle County District Judge Paul Dunkelman gave Peters a fine of $1,500.[61]
On September 6, 2023, Peters pleaded not guilty to three counts of
attempting to influence a public servant (felony), conspiracy to commit
trying to influence a public servant (felony), criminal impersonation
(felony), two counts of conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation
(felony), identity theft (felony), first-degree official misconduct
(misdemeanor), violation of duty (misdemeanor), and failing to comply
with the secretary of state (misdemeanor).[96] Her trial was pushed back to February 9, 2024,[97] with the jury selection process to take place on the two preceding days.[98]
On July 19, 2023, Tina Peters fired her attorney, Harvey
Steinberg, and hired new attorneys, Douglas Richards and Madalia Maalik.
They requested to push the trial to October 18–30, 2023.[99]
On November 13, 2023, Peters filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Denver, Colorado against the United States, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, 21st Judicial District Court
Attorney Daniel Rubinstein, and Colorado Secretary of State Jena
Griswold. The suit alleged that these government officials violated her
constitutional rights by retaliating with investigations and charges
against her for her alleged misconduct as an election official when she
raised election integrity concerns in the 2020 General Election.[100]
In February 2024, Peters was scheduled to go to court for her criminal case but had fired her attorneys again, claiming to have COVID-19.
Attorney Michael Edminister took over the case from Douglas Richards
and other attorneys in the Richards Carrington law firm, making him the
fifth attorney of record and the fourth time her case has been
postponed.[101] The trial was again delayed until the July and August 2024.[102]
Peters attempted to have the charges against her dismissed several times. U.S. District Court Judge Nina Y. Wang
dismissed Peters' motion to dismiss the criminal investigation citing a
failure to state a claim, a lack of standing, and a lack of
jurisdiction to dismiss the case.[103][104] The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals denied her appeal of that decision, with a unanimous 3–0 ruling affirming the lower court's decision.[105][106] Then, the Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Neil Gorsuch denied Peters' application for an injunction to dismiss or halt a criminal trial against her.[107][108] The trial then proceeded.
Conviction and sentencing
Peters was convicted in August 2024 on seven of ten charges of
engaging in a security breach to advance a false conspiracy theory of
election fraud. Four of the convictions were for felonies.[27][109] On the day after her conviction, she appeared on the Steve Bannon War Room
podcast to insist she would continue to pursue her allegations,
referring to a debunked theory originating from former Michigan
politician Patrick Colbeck and amplified on Twitter by Rasmussen Reports alleging Dominion engineers based in Serbia could change votes over the internet.[110][111]
Peters was sentenced to nine years in prison and immediately taken into custody in October 2024.[112]
At her sentencing, District Court Judge Matthew Barrett told Peters,
"Your lies are well documented... I'm convinced you'd do it all over
again if you could."[113]
Peters told the judge, "I've never done anything with malice to break
the law. I've only wanted to serve the people of Mesa County."[112] Barrett told her, "You are no hero. You're a charlatan who used, and is still using, your prior position in office to peddle a snake oil that's been proven to be junk time and time again."[29] Subsequent to the sentencing the courthouse increased security after receiving threats to the judge and staff.[114]
On February 7, 2025 Peters filed a federal habeas corpus petition
in U.S. District Court of Colorado, arguing that she should be released
on bond pending the appeal decision. Peters asked the court to appear
at the hearing remotely from jail in Pueblo, but the judge denied the request.[115] Her petition for release pending appeal was denied by Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Scott T. Varholak on December 8, 2025.[116]
In May 2025, President Donald Trump directed the U.S. Department of Justice
to take actions to secure Peters' release. In August 2025, Trump issued
a social media statement warning that "harsh measures" would be imposed
on Colorado if Peters was not released.[117] On November 12, the Colorado Department of Corrections received a letter from the Federal Bureau of Prisons asking to move Peters to federal custody,[118] a request denied by state prison officials and Colorado Governor Jared Polis.[119]
On December 11, Trump said he had pardoned Peters, despite having no
jurisdiction over convictions under state law. Colorado officials
rejected the pardon for lack of jurisdiction.[120] On December 23, Peters asked the state appeals court to recognize the federal pardon.[121]
On December 31, Trump posted to social media that the governor was a
"Scumbag" and the district attorney was "disgusting". He said: "I wish
them only the worst. May they rot in Hell."[122]
As of December 2025 Peters was housed at La Vista Correctional Facility in Pueblo, Colorado.[123] Her current parole eligibility date is December 20, 2028.[124]
In January 2026, a representative for Peters alleged that she was
attacked by another inmate inside a maintenance closet, that she had
been placed in solitary confinement, and that she would be charged with felony assault. The Independent
reported that surveillance footage showed that Peters "emerges from the
doorway and appears to wrap her hands around the inmate's neck". The
Colorado Department of Corrections responded that no one was injured and
that Peters was simply moved to a different housing area.[125]
jared
polis is a coward if he commutes tina peters' sentence. he is grasping
for straws. donald chump has bullied him and apparently jared wants to
show the world what a wimp he truly is and how he bows to any 1 who
bullies him.
'general hospital'? as i told you yesterday, brook lyn is going to get a baby. for a moment or 2. the woman that showed up on yesterday's episode - the pregnant stranger - did die in child birth.
elizabeth comforted britt who cried because her patient died (the pregnant woman). lulu told nathan she hasn't talked to maxie yet but knows the next time she does she'll have to tell her about what she and nathan feel.
oh, joslin. joslin was at carly's. lulu and charlotte were there. lulu thought it was to drop off art supplies for donna. no, charlotte wanted to see her father who is hiding out at carly's. he warned her not to keep doing this. after she and lulu left, josslyn remained. and heard noises in the attic she goes up with her gun drawn and tells cassadine to freeze. she hasn't seen his face yet.
Wednesday, March 4, 2026. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem
appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee and makes clear that she's
not running anything, she's not overseeing cases that cause problems
for DHS, she's not overseeing spending on projects, she's just posing
for photo-ops endlessly.
Yesterday, the
Senate Judiciary Committee conducted an oversight hearing on Homeland
Security. Appearing before them was Secretary of Homeland Security
Kristi Noem. Homeland Security has terrorized the American people and
behaved with no oversight at all. It wasn't until the January killings
of US citizens Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti that the repulsion grew
so great against ICE's actions that Noem and others were forced into
realizing that there are checks and balances in this system. Renee and
Alex were killed in Minnesota. Senator Amy Klobuchar is one of that
state's two US senators so we'll start by noting her.
Senator
Amy Klobuchar: Renee Good and Alex Pretti were killed. They should be
alive today. In fact, in one month in the city of Minneapolis, when you
look at the three fatalities that were results of shooting, 2 of 3 were
committed by federal agents. Are you aware of that?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Yes, I am.
Senator
Amy Klobuchar: So your agents not only their actions resulted in the
deaths of two innocent American citizens but they repeatedly violated my
constituents First Amendment rights to assemble. You say you believe
in the Second Amendment right to bear arms but Alez Pretti was
criticized repeatedly by officials in the administration for hvaing a
lawful permit to carry and having a gun. Your agents violated the
Fourth Amendment rights of my constituents by ramming through doors of
innocent people's homes, innocent citizens' homes without any kind of a
warrant and violated the Fifth Amendment right to due process. So, as
I've shared with my colleagues, if you believe in federalism, in freedom
and in liberty, you should be horrified by what the Department of
Homeland Security did in Minnesota. So my first question is, having
spoken to Mr. [Tom] Homan [White House Border Czar], what is the eact
number of DHS agents still in Minnesota?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: Well I believe that there is still close to 650 there
counting the investigators that are there working to get to the bottom
of the unprecedented fraud that has been found in the Medicaid funding
Senator
Amy Klobchar: As you know, I am all in on prosecuting fraud. I put in
place the US Attorney who exposed the fraud under the Biden
administration and brought the bulk of the prosecutions and also
recommended to Mr. [Todd] Blanch [Deputy Attorney General] that Joe
Thompson be the acting US Attorney who led those prosecutions and now
has left the office because the Department of Justice asked him and many
others to investigate Renee Good's wife instead of doing their jobs,
doing fraud. So what I want to know is when are you going to get down
to the original footprint as promised to us.
Secretary
Kristi Noem: We're continuing to work at that although those
investigators will continue to stay there to get to the bottom of that
fraud to make sure that those vulnerable people that rely on those
programs actually get services from those federal dollars that are
spent, that it's not stolen by criminals and used by individuals to
enrich themselves and send it out of the country.
Senator
Amy Klobuchar: Secretary, Chong Li Tao. Are you aware that agents
bashed in the door of a US citizen with no criminal record?
Secretary Kristi Noem: I can't speak to the specifics of that.
Senator Amy Klobuchar: Did you see the photos of that man being dragged out of his house in crocs and in his underwear?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Yes, I did.
Senator Amy Klobuchar: Did you believe that he was involved in fraud?
Secretary Kristi Noem: I do not know where that status of that investigation is.
Senator Amy Klobuchar: Are you aware that he is a son of a beloved nurse that treated our soldiers in Vietnam?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: I believe that we have laws in this country that need to
be enforced and need to be applied equally to everyone of enforcing the
laws and following the laws.
Senator Amy Klobuchar: Did they have a judicial warrant when they rammed through an American citizen's store?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Our law enforcement officers follow the same protocols and procedures that all law enforcement --
Senator
Amy Klobuchar: Are you aware that he tried to show his identification,
to show that he was an American citizen, and they didn't want to see it?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: Again, these officers, uhm, conduct themselves in
processes. If something was done inaccurately then certainly we will
make sure that we corrected and rectify it in the future.
Senator Amy Klobuchar: Are you aware that the person they were looking for was in prison and had been in prison for years?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Yes, I am. That's a target -- Yes, we do target operations going after and looking for --
Senator
Amy Klobuchar: Do you agree that it is unacceptable for your agents to
ram in someone's door and drag someone out in their underwear in below
zero temperatures when they have the wrong guy?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: Our officers conduct targeted operations and utilize the
law processes that are given to them in the tools --
Senator Amy Klobuchar: You are not answering that you think that's wrong.
Secretary Kristi Noem: They need to identify that individual and, uh, that individual --
Senator
Amy Klobuchar: They couldn't identify him by looking at his
identification? Instead, they had to drag him out, throw him in a car
and drive him around for an hour? How about pulling off off-duty police
officers, Madam Secretary, every single one of whom made clear who they
were. They were people of color, off-duty police officers. In
Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, the chief described how one off-duty police
officer -- someone of color, a US citizen -- was stopped and confronted
by ICE agents with their guns drawn demanding her proof of citizenship.
As Chief [Mark] Bruley said, "I wish I could tell you that this was an
isolated incident but other chiefs said it had happened to their own
officers. Why were these officers stopped?
Secretary Kristi Noem: We have thousands of law enforcement operations that we do every single day --
Senator
Amy Klobuchar: Do you think they were stopped because they were people
of color? Were they racially profiled -- Ms. Noem ?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: When I look at these American families who've been
victimized by criminals that we have removed from cities and
communities, I'm grateful for the work that our ICE officers do. And by
your only focus on --
Senator Amy Klobuchar: Are you defending stopping off-duty police officers of color and dragging a Mung elder out of his home?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: -- when you only talk about these situations like this
that we are conducting and you don't talk about the good work that they
do to protect people from being victimized, right? People that are in
this country that want to conduct violent crimes against them or take
advantage against them, uh, the law need to apply to everyone and we're
out there enforcing --
Senator
Amy Klobuchar: I am a former prosecutor, Ms. Noem, and I have always
worked with our police well. But that's not what was going -- these ICE
agents were not following police procedures. After the killings of
Renee Good and Alex Pretti, when I spoke to Alex's parents, they told me
that you calling him "a domestic terrorist." This was directly from
them the day after he was killed -- a nurse in our VA, Alex -- one of
the mos thurtful things they could ever imagine was said by you about
their son. Do you have anything you want to say to Alex Pretti's
parents?
Secretary Kristi
Noem: We were relying in the hours after that incident that was so
horrific, um, on information we were getting from our agents --
Senator
Amy Klobuchar I just asked if you had anything you wanted to say to
the parents or to the family of Renee Good after you called them
domestic terrorists?
Secretary Kristi Noem: That's what I am doing --
Senator Amy Klobuchar: You called them domestic terrorists.
Secretary
Kristi Noem: -- is I can't even imagine what they have gone through in
the loss of their son and the loss of their family members and
Senator Amy Klobuchar: But how about specifically calling them domestic terrorists without any evidence of that?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Sir, ma'am, I did not call him a domestic terrorist. I said it appeared to be an incident of.
Senator
Amy Klobuchar: I think the parents saw it for what it was. After the
killings, the federal government refused to cooperate with state law
enforcement agents, blocked Minnesota investigators from accessing the
scene. I know because I got directly calls from the mayor. I tried to
call the DOJ. I tried to do everything I could because they were very
worried about what was going to happen immediately -- especially after
Alex Pretti's death. Do you think that blocking local law enforcement
from the scene of a shooting makes people safer? Yes or no?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: Actually our HSI law enforcement officers risked their
lives on that scene preserving evidence and keeping the violent rioters
away from the evidence so that it could --
Senator Amy Klobuchar: It was Alex Pretti's life that was lost at the scene, Secretary Noem.
Secretary Kristi Noem: Yes, I am aware.
Kristi had nothing to say to the families of Renee or Alex when asked by Senator Klobuchar.
Molly Sprayregen (LGBTQ NATION) notes that she had nothing to say on the topic elsewhere in the hearing as well:
While testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday,
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem refused to admit she was wrong
for announcing that the two people killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis
were “domestic terrorists” in the immediate aftermath of their deaths.
“We have ample video evidence and eyewitness testimony proving you
were wrong,” Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) told her. “Your statements caused
immeasurable pain to these families.”
Durbin also brought up teacher’s assistant Marimar Martinez, who
survived being shot five times by ICE agents in Chicago and was also
accused by the federal government of being a domestic terrorist.
He then said he wanted to give Noem “an opportunity to do the right
thing” and asked, “Do you retract these statements identifying these
individuals as domestic terrorists?”
Noem did not, instead giving a long-winded answer about her heart
breaking for the families of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. She justified
her actions by claiming “agents at the scene” told her the victims were
terrorists and that the situation was “chaotic.”
Noem continued to skirt the issue, prompting Durbin to ask, “Is it so hard to say you were wrong?”
Yes, it apparently is too hard for Noem to admit she was wrong.
Senate Judiciary Democrats have accused FBI Director Kash Patel of
shutting down the FBI investigation into the death of Renee Good at the
hands of ICE agents because he did not want the warrant to call her a
“victim.”
The group posted on social media on Monday that a “credible
whistleblower” revealed that “FBI forensic experts were ordered to stand
down from processing the scene where Renee Good was killed, because
Kash Patel did not want Good referenced as a ‘victim’ in the warrant.”
In a follow-up post, the Democrats clarify that Patel “wanted to falsely
spin Renee Good as a threat to law enforcement.” The post included a
screenshot explaining information from a credible whistleblower that the
FBI’s Forensic Response Section was initially called to the scene of
Good’s death to access Good’s car and gather evidence.
Senator Adam Schiff also raised the murders of Renee and Alex in the hearing.
Senator Adam Schiff: […] Madam Secretary I want to
ask you about one of the first claims you made in
the immediate aftermath of the shooting of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
You accused them both, I think, within hours of engaging in domestic
terrorism. You have testified earlier that you did so based on
preliminary field reports. Who told you that these two victims were
engaged in domestic terrorism? Where did you get that information
from?
Secretary Kristi Noem: I have said before and will
repeat again for you Senator, that those reports were coming from on the
ground agents that were there. It was a chaotic scene.
Senator Adam Schiff: So, you spoke to agents on the ground who told you they were domestic terrorists?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Yes, my team was working with me,
talking to those agents on the ground to relay as much information as
possible that we could to the American people.
Senator Adam Schiff: So, your team told
you that people in Minneapolis said they were domestic terrorists. Did
they tell you whether they had any basis for that claim within either
minutes or hours of the shooting of Alex Pretti and Renee Good?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Sir, if you look back at the day
of January 24, there was a press conference earlier in the day and then I
held one hours later. And we were also talking –
Senator Adam Schiff: I’m asking you, did
you determine whether there was any basis for the sensational claim, a
claim that proved to be utterly false, that these two victims were
engaged in domestic terrorism?
Secretary Kristi Noem: There is an investigation ongoing. The FBI is leading --
Senator Adam Schiff: I’m aware of that. I’m asking you --
Secretary Kristi Noem: -- there is also internal investigations that are ongoing –
Senator Adam Schiff Schiff: What I’m asking about though is
not the investigation that’s ongoing […] I’m asking about your
statements in the immediate aftermath of these shootings. Your
statements based on completely unvetted information. Information that if
it was even provided to you, proved to be utterly false. That you were
content to tell the whole country. Do you have any concern about
misleading the whole country? Don’t you think in the immediate aftermath
of a shooting that you should provide only vetted information to the
public? How do you imagine you are going to gain the trust of the
American people if you’re pushing out false information about the
shooting of American citizens?
Senator Richard
Blumenthal's line of questioning is also worthy of note. Noem knew the
hearing was scheduled, she was briefed ahead of time by various people
on her staff so she would be ready and prepared to answer questions.
But she still couldn't.
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for being here today, Madam
Secretary. For a year, you maintained that no U.S. citizens have been
arrested or detained by ICE or CBP. After hearings I conducted in the
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations as the Ranking Member, you
admitted finally in a letter written to me just last month, that in fact
U.S. citizens have been detained and arrested. I’m going to ask, Mr.
Chairman, that that letter be entered into the record. Thank you. You
put the number at 38. Far more American citizens have been arrested by
ICE and CBP, probably in the hundreds, perhaps the thousands. Have you
met with any of the American citizens who have been detained or arrested
by your agency?
Secretary Kristi Noem:
The individuals that may have been detained and arrested were
individuals that could have been obstructing law enforcement operations
--
Senator Richard Blumenthal: You haven’t met with them, correct?
Secretary Kristi Noem: -- and
committing crimes that way, and that we would have been detaining
individuals until their identity was confirmed.
Senator Richard Blumenthal: I would like
to introduce you to three of them. Leo, Javier, and Marimar, would you
please stand? These three individuals, Madam Secretary, were arrested by
your agency. Leonardo Venegas, Javier Ramirez, and Marimar Martinez. Do you know what your agents did to Leo
Venegas? I’ll tell you. On May 21 of last year, they entered the private
property at a house that he was constructing without consent, without a
warrant, illegally. Again, on June 12, they entered private property, a
home where he was doing construction. He is a United States citizen,
born in Florida. They seized him and ignored and disregarded his proof
of citizenship. Wouldn't you agree with me that no U.S. citizen simply
working lawfully should be arrested?
Secretary Kristi Noem: In law enforcement operations across the country, there are times when U.S. citizens --
Senator Richard Blumenthal: It’s a simple yes or no.
Secretary Kristi Noem: -- may be arrested or detained until their identity is confirmed and that they haven’t committed a crime.
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Would you
agree with me, Madam Secretary, that U.S. citizens should not be
arrested when they are obeying the law, they have no criminal record,
and they are engaged in lawful activity?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Sir, in situations
where law enforcement, regardless of the agency, across the country,
when there is probable cause an individual --
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Let me tell you about Javier Ramirez. Do you know what your agents did to Javier
Ramirez? He was on his own private property when he was assaulted by
masked agents—his own property—without a warrant, without consent. They
said, “Get him, he's Mexican.” He was violently slammed into the ground
while being handcuffed and taken into custody, despite telling officers
that he is a United States citizen and even showing them his passport.
And when he was asked what he was being arrested for, you know what they
said? “We don’t know.” Wouldn’t you agree that targeting someone just
because he is, or looks like he is, Mexican, when he is a United States
citizen, is wrong?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Senator, we do not
target people based on their race or ethnicity. We do targeted
operations based on criminal backgrounds and information that we have.
Senator Richard Blumenthal: This story
goes on, Madam Secretary. Javier was detained for over four days. He was
denied medicine that he needed for severe diabetes. He lost
consciousness. He had severe hypoglycemia. Wouldn't you agree with me
that medical treatment should have been provided to him? He was denied.
Secretary Kristi Noem: Senator, medical treatment is provided to individuals in our detention centers --
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Well, it wasn’t for him. Wouldn’t you agree that was wrong?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Within 12 hours,
they have a medical examination, and we get them the prescriptions and
medications that they need. They also have a full evaluation, including
--
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Will you commit to take action and to look into why he was denied medical treatment?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Yes, I will look into that case specifically for you, Senator.
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Marimar
Martinez is with us as well. She is standing right behind you. She was
on her way to donate clothing at her church when she came across an
unmarked car. The agents sideswiped her car. Three masked agents in
camouflage stormed out. One of them pulled out his gun and fired at her
moving vehicle, hitting her five times. She almost bled to death.
Wouldn't you agree that shooting Marimar Martinez, a United States
citizen from Chicago, on her way to donate clothing at her church is
wrong?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Sir, I don’t
know the situation or the case. I’ll look into it to ensure that all the
procedures were followed properly.
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Well, I’m glad you’ll look into it. Marimar, by the way, was falsely charged
with impeding law enforcement, but the case actually fell apart. The
judge dismissed it as being trumped up. He dismissed it with prejudice.
In fact, the agent who shot her—I’m not going to name him, but you know
who he is—was quoted on social media the day or so afterward, and he
said, “I fired five rounds, and she had seven holes. Put that in your
book, boys” and “Cool, I'm up for another round of f--- around and find
out.” Will you join me in condemning that agent?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Sir, that situation I don’t know the details of, but I will look into that.
Senator Richard Blumenthal: I don’t
know why you can't join me in saying it was wrong to shoot Marimar,
almost cause her death, and then brag about it.
Wouldn’t you agree with me that it was wrong?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Sir, the way
that you have portrayed it, it appears to be, but let me look at the
case so I can speak to the specifics of it.
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Apparently,
contrary to what you just said, you actually supported the agent who
shot Ms. Martinez five times. He is quoted as saying, when he was asked,
“Everyone has been supportive, including Chief Bovino, Chief Banks,
Secretary Noem, and El Jefe himself,” referring presumably to President
Trump. Is the agent who shot Ms. Martinez still on the job?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Sir, our law
enforcement officers conduct operations every day according to
procedures and training and experience they have. Whenever something is
not done properly --
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Is the agent who shot Ms. Martinez still on the job, carrying a gun?
Secretary Kristi Noem: I don’t know the details. I will find out and get that information to you.
Senator Richard Blumenthal: Would you agree that he shouldn’t be on the job?
Secretary Kristi Noem: I will look into this case and get back to you on the details. I’m not familiar with it.
Marimar
Martinez. The country knows her name and story. But Krisi Noem will
have to "look into this case and get back to you"? Marimar's case has
received a ton of press attention and yet Kristi Noem, who heads
Homeland Security, is not versed in it? Do her photo ops take up all of
her time? She's the head of the department. ICE attacked Marimar.
Marimar's lucky to be alive. And yet Kristi hasn't bothered once to
look into what happened ("I don't know the details").
She
doesn't know much. We'll note Senator Cory Booker next and pay
attention for the section where he brings up the cost of a building DHS
recently purchases -- the cost they paid versus the cost of the
building's actual market value.
Senator Cory Booker: Secretary Noem, you're in charge of your agency, the buck stops with you -- correct?
Secretary Kristi Noem: I'm in charge of my agency. Yes, correct.
Senator Cory Booker: And you had to swear an oath to the Constitution before you took this jor, right?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Correct.
Senator
Cory Booker: So one of the most sacrosanct ideas of our nation --
enshrined in our Constitution -- is freedom, is liberty.It is an idea
that the government has a very high standard should they take away
liberty and freedom from an American citizen? How many US citizens has
DHS detained as of last October?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: Senator, if you're talking about detained and arrested, is
that those that have been violating and obstructing our law enforcement
operations? If that what you're referencing because it could be
hundreds and hundreds We have faced violent riots across the
country.
Senator Cory Booker:
You are specifically in Portalnd and in only people you've detained are
committing crimes, but you and I both know that's not true. So then how
many people have you detained?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: Can't give you an accurate number because we've literally
detained and arrested many for those obstruction of law enforcement
operations and also other records that --
Senator
Cory Booker: Let me tell you what my - my staff researched. May I, may
I continue? Public records are showing that over 170 incidents of your
agency unlawfully taking away the liberties and freedoms of American
citizens. This includes 20 children -- 20 American kids -- that your
agency detained. How long can your agency detain an American citizen?
Secretary Kristi Noem: We don't -- we don't detain children and separate them from their parents.
Senator
Cory Booker: Those parents have chosen -- you're telling me -- to keep
their child with them? I just want to be clear. You're telling me
under oath right now that your agency has not detained American
children?
Secretary Kristi Noem:
Those parents have chosen to keep their children with them. We don't
separate families like the Biden administration did -- We keep them
together and parents have the option on if they want their child with
them or not with them.
Senator Cory Booker: When you detain an American citizen, how long do they last?
Secretary Kristi Noem: We don't detain American citizens and when there's probable cause --
Senator
Cory Booker: Let me -- because you're not speaking truthfully under
oath. Isaias Pena Salcedo, a US citizen living in California, was
detained more than 70 hours -- almost 3 days -- even after he showed ICE
agents his passport. My colleague Senator Blumenthal gave you example
after example. He brought people here who had something else we
Americans consider sacrosanct, our home, our property. Your masked
agents jumping out of unmarked cars have broken into -- considerable
property damage occurring in American citizens' homes. Case after case
of this and you sit here before me and claim the buck stops with you.
But you don't even know the names of these individuals. I ran New
Jersey's largest municipal police department. When my officers engaged
in misconduct, you can be damn well sure I knew about it and I
investigated it. And yet you have situations where your officers are
violating the sanctity of people's homes, arresting and detaining them
and holding their children and you're acting as if you don't know about
it and saying that under oath. Marimar Martinez -- who is here right now
-- on her way to church, an American citizen going to church, not just
to worship but to donate clothing -- your officers shot her multiple
times. The case was thrown out of court and you represent here that you
don't know about it. In New Jersey, are you aware of your officers'
activities in places like schools? Are you aware of your officers'
activities at our public schools?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: Sir, we don't go into schools and do targeted law
enforcement operations. We do targeted law enforcement operations like
other agencies and
Senator Cory
Booker: ICE officers entered the grounds of a high school in
Minneapolis. That's a fact. Elementary school children in New Jersey
are terrified of your agents. When they came up a school bus top, they
fled. Another school, higher education, Columbia University. your
agents reportedly lied to students, told them they were searching for a
missing person to gain access to private spaces, to non public areas of
campus. Secretary Noem, these are kids. They're terrified in our
communities. How do you think that affects them when children in my
stage go running, fleeing and often you will pursue children throwing
them to the ground, getting on their backs,putting them in handcuffs. I
want to talk to you about this incredible empire of for-profit
companies that are profiting at rates we've never seen and the way
you're using money. Let's -- let's drill down on the warehouses, the
DHS has been buying over the last several months, totaling hundreds of
millions of dollars. Are you familiar with the acquisition of a
warehouse DHS recently bought in Roxbury Township, New Jersey?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Yes.
Senator Cory Booker: You are familiar with that.
Secretary Kristi Noem: I'm familiar.
Senator Cory Booker: How much you spent of it?
Secretary Kristi Noem: No, sir. I do not.
Senator Cory Booker: $129.3 million. Do you know how much it was assessed for in New Jersey?
Secretary
Kristi Noem: Sir, we're purchasing centers across the country to build
efficiency into our detention system. Efficiency so that we can --
Senator
Cory Booker: As a person who's run tight budgets before and had
taxpayer dollars. You paid $129.3 million for a facility in my state
that was assessed at less than half of that at $62 million to work for a
president that says he's a great dealmaker. I can't believe he thinks
that you're a great dealmaker. But what's worse than that is that the
Roxbury Township Council comprised entirely of Republicans voted
unanimously early this year to oppose that facility. My office tried to
facilitate a meeting between DHS and local officials so that ICE could
hear their concerns. Yet DHS did not even respond. That is
unacceptable. That you all would enter a town, you wouldn't even follow
environmental reviews or have conversations with local officials about
the resources from emergency resources to fire resources and more that
you're going to pull down. You didn't even have a conversation. So,
you know, do you comply with court orders?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Yes, we do comply with agency --
Senator Cory Booker: Do you comply with court orders?
Secretary Kristi Noem: Yes, we have. We -- we comply with the federal court orders.
Senator
Cory Booker: You were saying under oath that you do and yet we know in
January, the Chief Judge, Republican appointee for the federal district
of Minnesota found that ICE had violated nearly 100 court orders since
January 1st alone. In my state of New Jersey last month, the chief of
staff to Deputy Attorney General admitted in my state to the New Jersey
District Court that the government had violated 52 separate court
orders -- all involving cases where immigrants successfully challenged
the legality of their detention. So this again is a Constitution that
you swore an oath to and one of the most important ideas is that no one
is above the law. You are violating the separation of powers, violating
court orders and routinely violating the Civil Rights of Americans.
This is a reckless and out of control agency that you are responsible
for. You seem to have no situational awareness whatsoever of some of
the most egregious examples of Americans being completely attacked,
violated, undermined in accordance with our laws by their own
government. And this is what is phenomenal to me -- is immigration was
your president's number one issue, overwhelmingly popular with the
American people. But now it's overwhelmingly unpopular and it's not
because you are deporting dangerous people that everybody here wants out
of our country. No, it's because you're going into our schools.
You're terrorizing out children. You're detaining children. You're
arresting Americans. You're breaking into our homes. You're terrorizing
out streets. You're violating our rights to peacefully protest again
and again and again. [. . .] Either you are utterly incompetent or you
are violating laws with impunity. You should step down from your
position. If you odn't, you should be removed by this president. And if
not, Congress should impeach you.
Worth
62 million dollars but the US government spent $129 million of our
taxpayer dollars to purchase it. DOGE was always a con job. The
spending -- certainly at Homeland Security -- has been off the charts
and it has been wasteful spending. Kristi Noem is the Secretary of
Homeland Security. Americans need to be asking what she's doing with
her time and our money.
We'll wind down with two things on the war on Iran.
U.S.
troops working at a tactical operations center at a commercial port in
Kuwait on Sunday had no warning that a deadly Iranian drone was headed
straight toward them.
Flying slow and low to
the ground, the one-way attack system evaded U.S. air defenses and hit
the Shuaiba port on the Persian Gulf, according to two U.S. officials,
killing six American servicemembers and seriously wounding others.
The
facility struck was a large trailer with walls protected by concrete
slabs, but wasn’t fortified from the top, according to a third person
briefed on the attack.
Their deaths highlight
the risks posed by Iranian drones to tens of thousands of American
military personnel serving in the Middle East after President Trump, who
campaigned on bringing U.S. troops home from endless wars in the
region, launched a massive military campaign against Iran on Saturday.
While
the Pentagon has used sophisticated air defense systems to great effect
for decades against Iranian missiles, military officials have struggled
to solve the challenge posed by small drones that fly low to the ground
and evade traditional detection methods. In a similar attack just over
two years ago, three U.S. soldiers were killed when an Iranian Shahed
drone struck a small installation at Tower 22 in Jordan.
The following sites updated:
