Legal fallout from the 2020 election continues to play out in courtrooms across the United States, with the latest bombshell coming out of Arizona.

According to JustTheNews, former Arizona Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters landed an 8.5-year prison sentence on Thursday after being found guilty of felony and misdemeanor charges related to the 2020 election.

The sentence was handed down by Colorado District Court Judge Matthew Barrett. He also imposed several fines as a result of Peters' punishment for a security breach related to voting equipment in the county during the 2020 election.

Peters reportedly has health problems and had requested probation, which was denied.

What's going on?

The serious sentencing handed down on Thursday was a result of the 10 charges the former county official faced, which were almost all related to security breaches with voting equipment during the last election.

A local outlet noted:

Peters faced a total of 10 criminal charges related to her role in helping a man gain unauthorized access to voting equipment during a secure software update in May 2021. The county’s voting machine’s passwords and copies of its hard drive were later posted online by people trying to undermine the validity of the election system.

The person who Peters gave the security badge to, Conan Hayes, is reportedly affiliated with MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, who has experienced his own serious legal fallout from his attempts to prove voter fraud in the wake of the election.

JustTheNews noted:

The attorneys argued that Peters was trying to become famous and a "hero" as she became “fixated” on voting problems, according to The Associated Press.

Lawyers for Peters argued that their client was only trying to preserve election security, though they admitted that she let Hayes copy the hard drive of a ballot-marking machine.

JustTheNews wrote, "The defense argued that Peters did this because the county wouldn't allow her to have a county technology expert observe the software update."

Social media reacts

Peters' sentencing received mixed reactions across social media, with some celebrating the sentence and others arguing that the sentence was far too heavy.

"It really is. Murderers get lighter sentences," one X user wrote.

Another X user wrote, "I look forward to when the pendulum swings back in our favor."

It was noted that Peters could decide to appeal the sentence.