Approved

In a jailhouse visit marked by resilience, revelation and restrained emotion, former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters offered a window into the chapter of her life that has largely unfolded behind bars. 

For two-and-a-half hours on May 18, we sat across from each other in a controlled visitation room. No pens or paper were allowed, so what follows is drawn from a memory still sharp with immediacy, and a recorded voice memo I made in my truck just moments after we said goodbye.

Peters wore standard prison-issued clothing and a DOC patch with her name and inmate number sewn on. I bought her a cappuccino from the vending machine and a Butterfinger, which I had to unwrap and place on a paper plate before handing it to her across the table. She smiled and said it was a rare treat – something she doesn’t get to experience very often.