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Why we started Mesa County Compass
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, Local, Top Stories

Why we started Mesa County Compass

By Ruth Kinnett and Lisa Fry | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice In June 2023, we were sitting at a kitchen table watching headlines move faster than facts. A recall effort was underway against District 51 School Board member Andrea Haitz, and something didn’t sit right. We kept hearing fragments — social media posts, clipped quotes, secondhand outrage — but we couldn’t find the full conversation. So we decided to start one. Mesa County Compass began on June 10, 2023, during that recall effort. At the time, we believed the full truth had not been properly revealed and that Haitz was being unfairly accused of something she had not done. What started as a response to that moment grew into something larger — a platform dedicated to conversation, clarity, and giving p...
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After Trump pulls endorsement, CD3 Republicans weigh loyalty and constitutional independence
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State, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

After Trump pulls endorsement, CD3 Republicans weigh loyalty and constitutional independence

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice President Donald Trump’s decision to revoke his endorsement of Rep. Jeff Hurd and instead back primary challenger Hope Scheppelman reshaped the Republican race in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District. It also sharpened a debate inside the party: does representation mean standing firm on constitutional ground—even when that conflicts with the president—or aligning closely with the America First agenda? From Durango to Grand Junction, Republicans are trying to sort out what Trump’s move means—not just for June, but for November. A question of representation Delta County resident Shirley Bauer said Trump’s announcement hit her hard. “When I heard President Trump pulled his endorsement of Rep. Jeff Hurd, it honestly thr...
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The question no court has answered: Was Tina Peters jailed for speech?
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

The question no court has answered: Was Tina Peters jailed for speech?

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice Despite months and months of litigation in both state and federal courts, no appellate court has ruled on whether Tina Peters’ speech was constitutionally protected—or whether it was improperly used to justify keeping her behind bars. Her bond challenge stalled in Colorado’s appellate court, which dismissed it as untimely. She's also turned to federal court, where her habeas petition was rejected under the Younger abstention doctrine. Even after a certificate of appealability was denied at the district court level, her case now proceeds forward in the Tenth Circuit—still without an answer to the First Amendment question at its core. Peters’ case is now moving through two separate court systems.  Peters’ conviction is b...
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Speech or statute? Appeals court weighs bond denial in Tina Peters case
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Speech or statute? Appeals court weighs bond denial in Tina Peters case

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice The Colorado Court of Appeals is being asked to decide whether Tina Peters was denied bond because of her speech—or whether the issue is already foreclosed by appellate rules. Was her bond denied because of her speech? The Attorney General’s office argues the court does not need to answer that question. In its view, Peters’ petition is untimely, successive and barred under Colorado’s appellate rules. The dispute now before the court centers on bond pending appeal. The defense says a district judge treated Peters’ public criticism of Mesa County’s voting system as a public danger. The state says the bond statute independently supports denial and that the petition should be dismissed on procedural grounds. 2026-01-30 A...
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New Study Alleges Hundreds of Thousands of Record Changes After Colorado Election Certification
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Joehoft.com, Approved, National

New Study Alleges Hundreds of Thousands of Record Changes After Colorado Election Certification

By: Joe Hoft | JoeHoft.com Vote Tampering In Colorado– Explosive New Report Breaking report from Unite4Freedom staff Tampering with federal election results is against the law, and a new study by Unite4Freedom exposes an explosive problem—federal election records of the vote are changing after the election has been certified. Is this Malice, ignorance or pathetically pervasive Apathy (MIA) by our election officials? Tina Peters Was Right Harassed, prosecuted, and convicted by the state of Colorado for defying unlawful orders from Colorado Attorney General Jenna Griswold, Tina Peters is living out a nightmare no American should ever experience. Confined to a Colorado jail, Tina is serving an excessive and u...
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$4 million-plus in alleged Medicaid ride billing draws federal fraud charges in Colorado
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

$4 million-plus in alleged Medicaid ride billing draws federal fraud charges in Colorado

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Colorado’s Medicaid transportation system operates on a straightforward premise. A ride is provided to a qualified Medicaid recipient. Documentation is submitted. The state reimburses the provider. For thousands of Coloradans, particularly those in rural communities or without reliable transportation — that structure makes routine medical care possible. But federal prosecutors now allege that in two separate cases, the reimbursement model itself was manipulated. Non-emergent medical transportation billing is the focus in the cases that have been filed in U.S. District Court this month regarding providers in Mesa and Douglas counties. The cases involve more than $4 million. On Feb. 10, the U...
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Trump Excludes Polis From White House Governors Meeting
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kdvr.com, Approved, State

Trump Excludes Polis From White House Governors Meeting

By: Parker Gordon | KDVR DENVER (KDVR) — President Donald Trump posted on Wednesday that two Democratic governors will not be invited to a bipartisan meeting next week. Gov. Jared Polis is one of them. “The invitations were sent to ALL Governors, other than two, who I feel are not worthy of being there,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, referring to Polis and Governor Wes Moore of Maryland. Trump said Polis was not invited to the governors’ meeting since former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters is serving her prison sentence. The post comes after Trump has repeatedly called for the release of former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, who was convicted for her role in a 2021 election security breach. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT KDVR
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Eric Coomer’s court admissions reignite unresolved questions in Colorado’s Mesa County election case
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Eric Coomer’s court admissions reignite unresolved questions in Colorado’s Mesa County election case

By A.L. Goodwin | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Recent court filings in Coomer v. Byrne et al., Case No. 8:24-cv-00008-TPB-SPF (M.D. Fla.), contain sworn admissions by Dr. Eric Coomer, the former Director of Product Strategy and Security for Dominion Voting Systems, that materially alter the public understanding of foreign interaction with U.S. election system technology. Filed on January 23, 2026, Coomer’s responses acknowledge that he worked directly with foreign individuals and foreign-based employees on Dominion voting equipment, adjudication software, election system code, and programming.  The sworn responses themselves are contained in the court filing below. 278-1Download He further admitted that Serbian employees had the ability to ...
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State Prison Investigates Incident Involving Tina Peters at La Vista Facility
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DENVER7, Approved, State

State Prison Investigates Incident Involving Tina Peters at La Vista Facility

By Stephanie Butzer | Denver7 Colorado Department of Corrections spokesperson Alondra Gonzalez-Garcia confirmed to Denver7 that the incident happened on Sunday and nobody was injured. Tina Peters, a former Mesa County clerk who was sentenced to nine years behind bars for her role in an election security breach in 2021, was involved in an incident with another inmate at La Vista Correctional Facility over the weekend. Colorado Department of Corrections spokesperson Alondra Gonzalez-Garcia confirmed to Denver7 that the incident happened on Sunday and nobody was injured. "The Department can confirm that inmate Tina Peters was involved in an incident with another inmate at the La Vista Correctional Facility on January 18, 2026, in which no one was injure...
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Counties told to fix energy policy they didn’t create: Mesa commissioner pushes back
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Counties told to fix energy policy they didn’t create: Mesa commissioner pushes back

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice Mesa County Commissioner JJ Fletcher said he wasn’t looking to start a political fight when he published a recent op-ed questioning Colorado’s rapid move away from natural gas. What he wanted, Fletcher said, was to put a practical concern on the record—one he hears repeatedly from rural counties. Fletcher said the problem has become harder to ignore in recent weeks. With power shutoffs in December, higher utility bills and public anger spilling into regulatory hearings, he said counties are being asked to answer for decisions they didn’t make. In an interview with RMV, Fletcher said the message from state leaders has been consistent: counties are expected to deal with the impacts of electrification, even though they don’t contr...
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