Phil Weiser Blasts Tina Peters’ Sentence Commutation by Jared Polis: ‘Huge Mistake’

EXCERPT:

WEISER: "I should emphasize here, I prosecuted Tina Peters along with the Mesa County District Attorney. He‘s a Republican, I‘m a Democrat. The prosecution led to a just sentence. It was close to nine years. And Governor Polis' commutation of that sentence, against the advice of the board, was a huge, historic mistake. What the individuals you‘re referring to said in an op ed was that Tina Peters was not remorseful, which is, to my mind and to their mind, a fundamental requirement to get your sentence commuted. They called her actions performative. Obviously, we‘ve seen her, since leaving, saying things that are highly provocative, calling into question the prosecution itself. And that was, to me, an affront to the rule of law and an injustice. People who have sentences that may be long, who are remorseful, circumstances are changed. Those are the sorts of cases for commutation. In her case, the fact that the president was trying to bully Colorado, that‘s not a basis. And I pushed back against this administration when they tried to cut SNAP benefits as part of their bullying campaign. We went to court. We got that action stopped. I am deeply sorry that she was let out, that the commutation happened. And as for the members of the board speaking up, those are their First Amendment rights that they are voicing and I am, again, just pained by this whole situation."