Truth and Liberty: The Fight to Free Tina Peters

“Truth gave us liberty and now liberty must fight for truth!” These we’re the words from the Film and production school Director of Charis Bible College, Elizabeth Muren, tonight in her opening remarks of a new play she recently wrote called “Finding America.”

The play, a part of the program for the annual “Truth and Liberty Awards Banquet” hosted by Andrew Wommack Ministries and Charis Bible College was just a small portion of the events of the evening that highlighted how the pillars of “Truth” and “Liberty” go hand in hand.

The play described how America was founded, and highlighted the fact that this great nation was founded on biblical principles, by God fearing men, with the courage to stand against tyranny.

The play culminated with quivering hands signing the Declaration of Independence as Americas founding fathers put ink to paper in one of the boldest moves in history by declaring their independence from Great Britain. Today, that document stands as one of the strongest documents every written.

Tonights awards, “The Samuel Adams award for Courageous Christian Leadership,” and “The Samuel Whittemore award for Courageous Christian Citizenship,” were awarded to Historian David Barton, and former Mesa County Colorado Clerk and Recorder, Tina Peters respectively.

David, known as “Americas Historian,” is the Founder and President of WallBuilders, a national organization dedicated to restoring America’s moral, religious, and constitutional heritage.

David is a best-selling author whose work draws from an extensive personal collection of tens of thousands of original documents from the Founding Era. He speaks to more than 400 groups each year and is widely recognized for his expertise in historical and constitutional issues.

During his acceptance speech, Barton told the story of how the “Declaration of Independence” came about and the time line of events that led up to its signing. As history goes, the founders were collaborating to create the first Great Seal of the United States to highlight God’s role in supporting liberation from tyranny. Benjamin Franklin finally came up with the phrase, “Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God.”

The phrase never became the official seal, but did end up becoming Thomas Jeffersons personal seal.

Barton went on to describe how research has shown that 34% of the recorded quotes of the founding fathers were quotes from the Bible and 29 of the 56 signers of the Declaration held seminary or Bible College degrees.

At one point during the evening, the founder of Truth and Liberty, Andrew Wommack, spoke about “the” truth, being the Bible and when people start talking about “your truth,” there is no such thing.

There is only “the” truth.

Our nation was founded on Truth! There was purpose in Americas founding documents.

This leads us to Liberty.

For the past couple of decades, America has been a battleground for Liberty and because of her fight for Liberty, Americans have struggled with the truth.

America has battled with gender identity and religious freedom. She has fought against those who would love to see this nation fail and done her best to stand her ground for constitutional issues.

One of those battles has been for the first amendment of the Constitution. The right to the freedom of speech.

The recipient of the Samuel Whittmore award, Tina Peters, knows this fight all to well! She currently sits in a prison cell in Pueblo, Colorado and as of today has been behind bars for 575 days.

The following is the citation that the recently resigned managing director of “Truth and Liberty,” Richard Harris, gave for Tina.

“Tina, who is unable to be with us in person, served the Citizens of Mesa County, Colorado as their official County Clerk and Recorder.

She is a Gold Star Mom. Her son was a Navy seal who served several tours in Iraq and died in a parachuting accident.

She is a Grandmother and a cancer survivor.

Elected to be Mesa County Colorado Clerk and Recorder in 2019.

After the 2020 election, and 2021 municipal elections, she received reports of troubling irregularities. For example, registered voters with addresses that matched with empty lots.

Shortly after the municipal elections in the spring of 2021, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold announced that Dominion Voting Machines were going to do a a software update on machines across the state, including Mesa County. The update would delete many records.

State and Federal law require that all”election records’ be preserved for 22 months and 24 months respectively.

Tina believed the law required her to preserve a complete copy of all records related to the elections so that they could be audited in the future if necessary.

She requested that County “IT” personnel help her make a copy of the hard drive on election machines, but her request was denied. She also requested that the Secretary of State make a copy and was again denied.

With the date of the “Trusted Build” getting close, she asked for help from a non-government employee with technical skills and had a copy of the hard drive made in order to preserve the records according to her legal obligation.

Griswold went forward with the software update, and subsequent forensic analysis showed that the Trusted Build deleted approximately 29,000 election related records.

Tina was targeted by the Secretary of State and the Mesa County District Attorney. After a harrowing ordeal including police raids of her personal residence and vilification in the media, Tina was charged, prosecuted and ultimately convicted of several felonies and misdemeanors and sentenced to 9 years in state prison. During her October 2024 trial, the judge refused to allow evidence to be admitted regarding her legal duty to preserve records or testimony about her motivations. Then, during sentencing, the judge relied on out of court statements that he said showed she was defying “the law” and recalcitrant.

Tina was incarcerated at the age of 70 years old in the State prison in Pueblo Colorado. Court filings document that she has suffered health consequences and other trauma while in prison, including threats and harassment, including communications mocking her health issues, ridiculing her faith and political views, and implying potential physical harm.

The personal cost of her bold stand has been substantial. During the legal battles surrounding her case, Peters’ ex-husband who she separated from in 2017 and divorced in 2021, who suffered from Parkinson’s disease and early dementia, was placed in assisted living. She was not permitted to see him again. He later passed away.

In May 2025, President Donald Trump directed the U.S. Department of Justice to take actions to secure Peters’ release, and on November 12th, the Colorado Department of Corrections received a letter from the Federal Bureau of Prisons asking to move Peters to federal custody, a request denied by state prison officials and Colorado Governor Jared Polis.

In Late 2025, attorneys asked a federal judge to expedite a ruling on her habeas corpus petition and to release her on bond while her case is reviewed, citing serious decline in her health. Her request was denied.

In March, 2026, the Colorado Court of Appeals finally agreed that Peters’ 9 year prison sentence was illegal. The court found that the trial judge’s comments showed that he was punishing her for her speech in violation of the first amendment to the Constitution and remanded the case to the Trial court for re-sentencing, which is still pending.

Despite everything, Peters continues to maintain her innocence. She has not traded her conscience for leniency. She has endured imprisonment, public vilification, and profound personal loss while continuing to assert that she acted to protect the integrity of elections—not to undermine them.”

Tonight I had the privilege of sitting at a table with the Legal counsel for Tina, Attorney John Case and when I asked him what the one message Tina would want people to know was, he very quickly stated, “her fight is a fight against the first amendment.”

This should be alarming to every single American!

Later, when Case accepted the award for Tina, he explained how Jena Griswold, Colorado’s current Secretary of State had told Tina, “if you don’t retract what you have been saying about our voting system, we are going to remove you as clerk.” Not to long after that, Tina was addressing a crowd on the steps of the capital and told the people, in response to the threat, “but I say never!”

Weeks later, she was indicted. She went through a year and a half of litigation. She was not allowed to present her reasons for what she did. She was not allowed to present evidence that the election system is flawed and the machines could be manipulated by foreign actors; and then she was convicted.

On October 3rd, 2024, Judge Matthew Barrett sentenced Tina to 9 years in prison; stating, “you are a charlatan who peddled snake oil and exploited your position to spread election lies. You are no hero and you will likely repeat your actions if not imprisoned.”

A clear violation of her first amendment rights and bias from judge Barrett.

This bias and first amendment violation has become national news and proof that our liberties have been under attack.

Our right to free speech, if not fought for to retain, is one of the last barriers between Americas freedom and the tyranny that our founding fathers risked their lives and their fortunes to protect.

Recently, the Court of Appeals determined that Tina’s sentencing was unlawful and remanded the case to Judge Barrett for resentencing.

While she waits for resentencing, Tina remains in federal prison, but she has not been idle.

During his speech, Mr. Case told the room that in his most recent conversation with Tina, she had told him that she had figured out how to do her “Truth Matters’ show from prison with help from Ai and the team of people that is working tirelessly to get her release from prison.

One of those people that have been advocating for Tina’s release is Marcy Hoshiko. Tina’s best friend and dedicated crisis advocate.

After Case exited the stage, Ms. Hoshiko took the stage and was given the opportunity to share as a friend, about Tina’s character. She was able to tell what court transcripts would not tell you about the woman that she knows.

“On her fourth night in the Mesa County jail, she led her cellmate to Christ; and after, arranged a ride for the woman back home to Denver from Grand Junction.

When moved to Larimer County jail, she became the mom to many of the imprisoned women. Praying with them, reading the Bible with them, and leading many more to Christ. She became their light in a place of darkness.

When transferred to La Vista Correctional Facility in Pueblo Colorado, she found that there were no manuals and no rule books for inmates. If an inmate wanted a manual, they had to print one themselves at a cost of around $25. For many of the inmates, they could not afford $1 for a bag of chips. So Tina obtained a copy of the manual and began teaching the inmates the rules. She gave a voice to the voiceless.

Because of Tina, many of the women are now able to look at a guard and say, “actually, that’s not what the rules say.” So when the temperatures were reaching to the upper nineties, they were able ask for fans without repercussion. Again, giving a voice to the voiceless.

Many of the women shout “Free Tina Peters” when they see her walking in the halls. One woman had her tablet taken away as punishment for supporting Tina.

She helps those same women with their homework. She stays up late helping write parole applications. She advocates for the voice of others. In spite of her circumstance.

Surrounded by corruption, murderers, thieves and criminals; in the middle of the darkest place she has ever been—Tina is still the light! Christ shines through her. No matter what they do to her, no matter how they treat her, one thing never changes: her steadfast hope in Jesus Christ.”

As Tina Peters sits in prison, waiting for her resentencing, and hopefully her release, we are reminded through her fight for Liberty, that truth, if not fought for will silence our Liberty.

Samuel Adams said it best. “Freedom is not a gift bestowed upon us by other men, but a right that belongs to us by the laws of God and nature.”

So when those God given rights are under attack, when tyranny comes knocking at your doorstep, will you be willing to stand up to it?

Renowned pastor, Martin Niemöller said this, “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.”

We are somewhere in between “I did not speak up because I was not a Jew” and “Then they came for me and there was no one left.”

It is not just our right, but our duty to fight for the freedom of Tina Peters. Because if no one stands, and we are the last line of defense, we may not have another chance.