|
Former Republican candidate Solomon Peña had pleaded not guilty
to 13 charges including conspiracy, weapons-related charges and
interference with federally protected activities in connection
with the shootings in December 2022 and January 2023 on the
homes of four Democratic officials, including the current state
House speaker.
The attacks took place as threats and acts of intimidation
against election workers and public officials surged across the
country after President Donald Trump and his allies called into
question the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.
Prosecutors allege that Peña resorted to violence in the belief
that a “rigged” election had robbed him of victory in his bid to
serve in the state Legislature.
The shootings targeted the homes of officials including two
county commissioners after their certification of the 2022
election, in which Peña lost by nearly 50 percentage points. No
one was injured, but in one case bullets passed through the
bedroom of a state senator’s 10-year-old daughter.
Defense attorneys say Peña was not involved in the shootings and
that prosecutors were relying on the testimony of two men who
bear responsibility and accepted plea agreements in exchange for
leniency.
Peña faces a possible sentence of life in prison. His legal team
plans to appeal.
“The verdict this evening is a travesty,” attorney Nicholas Hart
said in a statement. “The evidence showed that Mr. Peña had
nothing to do with these shootings. Solomon Pena was prosecuted
because of his political beliefs, and because he advocated that
the 2020 election was stolen and rigged.”
Jurors listened to more than a week of testimony from elected
officials who were targeted, investigators and Peña’s
co-conspirators. Demetrio Trujillo and son Jose Trujillo
previously pleaded guilty to federal charges in connection with
the shootings.
Peña was arrested in January 2023 and held since then in state
and then federal custody. The weapons charges included
allegations that Peña fired a machine gun in relation to a crime
of violence.
A sentencing hearing has not been scheduled.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights
reserved |
|
