Elections official may have broken law by accepting Lindell plane ride - Business Insider
- MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell says he gave Colorado elections official Tina Peters a ride on his jet in August.
- According to a Colorado law, Peters was not allowed to accept gifts — including travel — valued at over $65.
- Lindell said he also paid $800,000 for Peters' legal defense fees out of his own personal funds.
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Former Colorado elections official Tina Peters may have flouted a state ethics law by accepting a private plane ride from MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell.
Lindell revealed to 9News journalist Marshall Zelinger on Tuesday that he had given Peters a lift on his private jet in August when he flew her out to his cyber-symposium in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
"I gave her a ride — on the cyber symposium, I give rides from people all over the country," Lindell told 9News. "She came to the cyber symposium with the group from Colorado. I picked people up. I invited all 50 states. All 50 states were represented. There's your answer. Another stupid question from a stupid journalist."
However, Peters' acceptance of the place ride may have violated Amendment 41, a guideline in Colorado that prohibits public officials like Peters from receiving gifts — including travel — that cost more than $65.
"If you are not a close friend or family member of an elected official or a public employee in Colorado, you can only give someone a gift of $65 per calendar year," Jane Feldman, former executive director of Colorado's Independent Ethics Commission told 9News.
Lindell told the outlet that he did not know Peters before meeting her at the symposium. Feldman said that such a declaration could potentially compromise any claim that Lindell was Peter's "close friend" when he flew her out to Sioux Falls, per 9News.
Lindell also said that he had put $800,000 into Peters' legal defense, though he did not state the timeframe for when this occurred, per the outlet. "I just put all the money in myself," Lindell said. "I don't know, I probably put in three, four, five, maybe 800,000 [dollars] of my own money."
Insider spoke to Lindell on Tuesday, who reiterated his contribution to paying off Peters' legal fees. He noted that the funds came from his "personal money," which was redirected through one of his platforms called the Lindell Legal Offense Fund.
Peters was indicted by a grand jury in March for leaking sensitive voting machine data, She was indicted on 10 counts related to the breach, including attempting to influence a public servant, criminal impersonation, and identity theft.
In a separate interview with Insider in March, Lindell defended Peters, claiming the Colorado state government had falsely accused Peters of crimes.
"She's a Gold Star mom. She's never had anything in her life, she's never had jaywalking ticket. She's as clean as ever. They're trying to accuse her of things, like, are you kidding me?" Lindell said, calling Peters a "hero."
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source: https://www.businessinsider.com/mypillow-ceo-tina-peters-state-ethics-law-private-plane-2022-4
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