丹佛（KDVR）——前梅萨县书记官蒂娜·彼得斯已出狱，但她的法律斗争远未结束。她的律师彼得·蒂克廷告诉Nexstar的KDVR，他正准备将她的案子提交至最高法院，希冀推翻她因2021年梅萨县选举设备泄露而被定罪的刑事判决。此举在彼得斯的法律团队与科罗拉多县书记官协会执行主任马特·克雷恩之间引发了不同反应，克雷恩称陪审团作出了正确的裁决。
DENVER (KDVR) — Former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters is out of prison, but her legal fight is far from over. Her attorney, Peter Ticktin, told Nexstar's KDVR that he is preparing to take her case to the Supreme Court in hopes of overturning her criminal convictions stemming from a 2021 breach of Mesa County's election equipment. The effort is drawing differing reactions from Peters' legal team and Matt Crane, executive director of the Colorado County Clerks Association, who says the jury reached the correct verdict.
彼得斯于2024年8月因与选举设备泄露相关的七项刑事指控被定罪。检方称，她在一次软件更新期间帮助一名未经授权的人进入县的投票设备。科罗拉多州州长贾里德·波利斯（民主党）减免了彼得斯的监禁刑期，但她的定罪仍然有效。
Peters was convicted in August 2024 on seven criminal counts connected to the election equipment breach. Prosecutors said she helped an unauthorized person gain access to the county's voting equipment during a software update. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) commuted Peters' prison sentence, but her convictions remain in place.
蒂克廷辩称，彼得斯是试图保存她认为在软件更新期间可能会丢失的选举数据。他坚持认为，彼得斯是在履行联邦选举记录保存法下的职责，而非犯罪行为。“她是一个无辜的女人，在为美国尽职，她因此受到严厉惩罚，”蒂克廷对KDVR说。
Ticktin argued that Peters was attempting to preserve election data she believed could be lost during a software update. He maintains that Peters was fulfilling her responsibilities under federal election record retention laws rather than committing a crime. "She's an innocent woman who was doing her duty to America, and she was punished severely for that," Ticktin told KDVR.
蒂克廷指出，联邦法律应当优先于州对选举设备访问的限制。“如果你必须采取某些措施以遵守联邦法规，即使这违反了州法规，你也可以这么做，”蒂克廷说。这一解释是他希望在最高法院提出的论点之一，但尚未被接受为对彼得斯定罪的法律辩护。
Ticktin argued that federal law should have taken precedence over state restrictions governing access to election equipment. "If you have to do something to make sure that you abide by a federal statute, even if it violates a state statute, you're allowed to do that," Ticktin said. That interpretation is part of the argument he hopes to bring before the Supreme Court. It has not been accepted as a legal defense to Peters' convictions.
蒂克廷还主张，彼得斯未得到公平审判，她被阻止向陪审团充分陈述辩护。科罗拉多州最高法院拒绝审理她的上诉后，蒂克廷表示，他的团队正准备向全国最高法院寻求审查。
Ticktin also contended that Peters did not receive a fair trial and that she was prevented from fully presenting her defense to jurors. After the Colorado Supreme Court declined to review her appeal, Ticktin said his team is preparing to seek review from the nation's highest court.
蒂克廷在后续声明中告诉KDVR：“我们必须在12月前提交辩护状，目前正在撰写。”他说，他的目标是推翻定罪并清除彼得斯的犯罪记录。科罗拉多州县书记员协会执行主任马特·克兰不同意蒂克廷关于彼得斯需要采取非常措施保存选举记录的说法。克兰告诉KDVR，梅萨县的选举工作人员已经备份了州法和联邦法律所要求的记录。
"We have until December to file our briefs and we're working on them now," Ticktin told KDVR in a follow-up statement. He said his goal is to overturn the convictions and clear Peters' criminal record. Matt Crane, executive director of the Colorado County Clerks Association, disagreed with Ticktin's argument that Peters needed to take extraordinary measures to preserve election records. Crane told KDVR that Mesa County election employees had already backed up the records required under state and federal law.
克兰说：“陪审团正确认定的是，她违反了法律。她不需要做她所做的事。”据克兰说，彼得斯的行为超出了履行县书记员职责所必需的范围。他说，选举官员已经制定了保存记录和保护投票设备的程序。克兰说：“选举诚信并不要求你违法。”克兰还对最高法院是否会推翻裁决提出质疑。克兰说：“我很难想象最高法院会推翻她的定罪。”
"What the jury got right is that she broke the law. She didn't need to do what she did," Crane said. According to Crane, Peters' actions went beyond what was necessary to fulfill her responsibilities as county clerk. He said election officials have established procedures for preserving records and protecting voting equipment. "Election integrity does not require you to break the law," Crane said. Crane also questioned whether the Supreme Court would overturn the verdict. "It's tough for me to envision a world in which the Supreme Court would overturn her conviction," Crane said.
尽管彼得斯已不再服原判刑期，但她的定罪仍然有效。科罗拉多州上诉法院此前认定，彼得斯的量刑受到了不当影响，部分原因是她受保护的言论，并下令进行进一步的量刑程序。克兰告诉FOX31，他认为州长本应让这一程序继续进行，而不是加以干预。克兰说：“我认为波利斯州长妨碍了司法公正的运作。”与此同时，蒂克廷主张彼得斯根本不应被定罪，她的获释并不能解决他所认为的不公正起诉。
Although Peters is no longer serving her original prison sentence, her convictions remain in place. The Colorado Court of Appeals previously found that Peters' sentence had been improperly influenced, in part, by her protected speech and ordered further sentencing proceedings. Crane told FOX31 he believes the governor should have allowed that process to continue before intervening. "I think Governor Polis got in the way of justice working," Crane said. Ticktin, meanwhile, argued that Peters should never have been convicted and that her release does not resolve what he considers an unjust prosecution.
蒂克廷说，他的法律团队正努力赶在12月的提交截止日期前，准备请求最高法院复审彼得斯的案件。最高法院没有义务受理上诉。如果大法官们拒绝审理，彼得斯的定罪将继续有效。
Ticktin said his legal team is working toward a December filing deadline as it prepares to ask the Supreme Court to review Peters' case. The court is not required to accept the appeal. If the justices decline to hear it, Peters' convictions would remain in place.
如果他们同意审理此案，最终可能维持原判、推翻原判，或将案件发回进行进一步审理，具体取决于所提出的法律问题。决定受理此案并不自动意味着彼得斯的定罪会被推翻。尽管存在这些不确定性，蒂克廷对他的法律策略表示了信心。“我一直都是为了赢，”蒂克廷说。“我看不出有任何理由从其他角度来看待这件事。”
If they agree to review the case, they could ultimately uphold the convictions, reverse them or send the case back for additional proceedings, depending on the legal questions presented. A decision to hear the case would not automatically mean Peters' convictions would be overturned. Despite those uncertainties, Ticktin expressed confidence in his legal strategy. "I'm always in it to win it," Ticktin said. "I don't see any reason to look at it any other way."
随着中期选举临近，这场法律战也重新引发了关于选举安全、问责制以及公众对投票系统信任的讨论。蒂克廷坚持认为彼得斯是在试图保护选举记录，并辩称对她的起诉引发了疑问：当选举官员认为记录面临风险时，他们该如何履行职责。克兰则对潜在后果有不同的看法。作为科罗拉多州县书记员协会的执行主任，克兰表示，他担心推翻彼得斯定罪可能向遵循既定安全程序的选举工作人员传递的信息。
With the midterm elections approaching, the legal battle is also renewing discussion about election security, accountability and public trust in voting systems. Ticktin maintains that Peters was trying to protect election records and argues that her prosecution raises questions about how election officials can fulfill their responsibilities when they believe records are at risk. Crane sees the potential consequences differently. As executive director of the Colorado County Clerks Association, Crane said he worries about the message that overturning Peters' convictions could send to election workers who follow established security procedures.
“这让选举官员背上更大的靶子，自2020年以来，他们一直在站出来反击这些谎言，”克兰说。克兰还强调，选民可以直接从当地选举办公室了解更多关于选举程序的信息。“你可以打电话给你的县书记员，报名参加参观，去看看吧，”克兰说。他鼓励选民不要让这场法律纠纷阻碍他们参与即将到来的选举。“一定要出去投票，”克兰说。
"It puts a bigger bullseye on the back of election officials who, since 2020, have been standing up and pushing back on these lies," Crane said. Crane also emphasized that voters can learn more about election procedures directly from their local election offices. "You can call your county clerk, sign up for a tour, go do that," Crane said. He encouraged voters not to let the legal dispute discourage them from participating in the upcoming election. "Just make sure you get out and vote," Crane said.
目前，彼得斯的定罪仍然有效，她的法律团队正在准备下一份文件。美国最高法院是否会同意审理她的案件仍有待观察。
For now, Peters' convictions remain in place as her legal team prepares its next filing. Whether the U.S. Supreme Court will agree to review her case remains to be seen.