Supporters of incarcerated former Republican Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters are pushing to have her transferred from a state facility to a federal prison, arguing that it would provide a safer environment as she appeals her state conviction. The federal Bureau of Prisons has now officially requested the move.
Peters is currently incarcerated at the La Vista Correctional Facility, a medium-security prison for women located in Pueblo, Colorado. In 2024, a state judge sentenced Peters to nine years in prison after she was found guilty of several felonies related to her efforts to help a man gain unauthorized access to Mesa County’s Dominion voting machines in 2021.
A spokesperson for the Colorado Department of Corrections (CDOC) confirmed the federal request, stating, “On November 12, 2025, we received a letter from the Federal Bureau of Prisons regarding Tina Peters. The letter is currently under review in accordance with all applicable departmental policies and procedures.”
The CDOC explained that transferring an incarcerated individual to another jurisdiction involves a multi-step process, including a multi-disciplinary assessment. Such transfers cannot be initiated by outside entities and are typically reserved for complex cases involving significant, long-term safety and security needs.
Peters’ attorneys have also filed a federal habeas petition, asking a federal judge to release her on bond while she appeals her state conviction. Her lead attorney, Peter Ticktin, told CPR News that he is advocating for her move to a federal facility and is pushing the U.S. Department of Justice to support the effort, citing her long-term safety concerns at the state prison.
“For somebody who’s perhaps a little more genteel, a little bit more educated, a little bit more established, it puts her in a more difficult position for sure. She’s been threatened,” Ticktin said.
He further revealed that the state informed Peters’ legal team that due to her behavior, she is ineligible to move to a different housing zone within the state prison.
“There is a level and a place in the prison where they can isolate women and put them with safer people, but you need to get approved for that. They say, ‘oh, no, she’s been written up too many times,’” Ticktin explained.
The Colorado Department of Corrections declined to comment on whether Peters has reported threats or whether she has been disciplined for rule violations.
Peter Ticktin, a constitutional lawyer based in Florida, also helped lobby for pardons for participants in the January 6 attacks. He has known former President Donald Trump since their days at New York Military Academy, where Trump attended middle and high school.
Ticktin has questioned whether the Justice Department is doing everything possible to secure Peters’ transfer to a minimum-security federal prison. He believes Peters is being targeted, much like other Trump supporters.
“Tina Peters is a proud American, and she’s not embarrassed or ashamed in any way. She’s proud of what she’s done because she’s not a criminal. She’s just a good person,” Ticktin said.
The Department of Justice has already become involved in Peters’ habeas case. Meanwhile, Trump has posted multiple times on social media, calling for her release and describing her as a “brave and innocent patriot.”
Peters argues that the judge who oversaw her case, Matthew Barrett, denied her bail in order to silence her views on the integrity of American elections, thereby violating her constitutionally protected right to free speech.
https://www.cpr.org/2025/11/14/tina-peters-wants-to-move-federal-prison/