Tenth Judicial District Attorney Jeff Chostner said Tuesday that he will not pursue charges of election bribery against El Paso County sheriff’s candidate Joe Roybal after the Republican nominee admitted to unknowingly violating Colorado election law.

In a letter of warning he issued to Roybal on Monday, Chostner said he declined to pursue charges because he did not believe a jury would convict Roybal “of an activity that had no actual impact on (his) ability to get on the ballot, and for which an untimely complaint was made.”

In the letter, though, Chostner admonished the candidate’s actions as “reprehensible and contrary to the functioning of a representative democracy.”

10th Judicial District to investigate El Paso County sheriff’s candidate bribery case

“Your actions have the potential of undermining confidence in the electoral system. As one seeking a position in law enforcement, your first priority is to uphold the law,” Chostner continued. “I believe you have significantly strayed from that responsibility. If further, timely allegations of a similar nature were to come before me, after the issuance of this letter, I would certainly look to institute criminal action.”

Roybal said in a statement issued from his campaign Tuesday he was not, as a first-time candidate, familiar with all Colorado election law.

“Now that I am aware, I assure the people of El Paso County my campaign will comply with this requirement in the future,” he said. “I am passionate about my home, El Paso County, and have dedicated my life to law enforcement. I will continue to serve the people of our community to the best of my ability with the honor and integrity they deserve.”

Chostner’s decision comes nearly three weeks after his office launched an investigation into a possible election violation involving Roybal and shooting range owner Mel “Dragon Man” Bernstein. Roybal was named the winner of the June 28 Republican sheriff’s primary.

In a complaint filed with the 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office on June 30, former sheriff’s contender and unsuccessful Republican House District 21 candidate Karl Dent alleged Bernstein in February offered a $5 discount at his shooting range to entice voters to sign Roybal’s petition to get onto the GOP primary ballot. 

“Mr. Roybal was present and allowed Mr. Bernstein to make this offer,” Dent wrote in his complaint. “It is violation of law for Mr. Roybal to have allowed this offer to be made by Mr. Bernstein. Additionally, it is against the law for anyone to accept a bribe as an inducement to sign an elections petition.”

Since 4th Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen had publicly endorsed Roybal, Dent requested his complaint be referred to the Colorado Attorney General’s Office for further investigation. Instead, Allen asked that Chostner take on the case as a special prosecutor, a move permitted under Colorado law.

Bernstein will also not face charges in the matter.

Dent had this reaction Tuesday via text message: “While the Pueblo DA’s Office did a James Comey on Joe Roybal, it appears to be two different forms of justice in El Paso County. The question was never if the petition signatures were valid, the question was simply if Joe gathered any signatures through any means of Bribery which according to Colorado Revised Statute he did.”

Greg Maxwell, one of two opponents Roybal faced for the GOP sheriff’s nomination in last month’s primaries, said he was concerned the accusations against Roybal could diminish public trust in law enforcement, which has faced increasing scrutiny over the past several years.

“One reason I did run (for sheriff) … was to have transparency in the department and rebuild some trust. Law enforcement is being scrutinized all the time,” he said. “We should be held to a higher standard. I was not part of this investigation so in all fairness to (Chostner) and in all fairness to Roybal, I just hope he was held to a higher standard because that would set the standard for others.”

A video posted to Facebook on Feb. 20 shows Bernstein at his Dragonman shooting range urging people to come to the range and sign a petition to get Roybal onto the Republican primary ballot. In return, they would receive $5 off admission to the range, Bernstein said. 

Roybal can be seen standing next to Bernstein in the video.

Colorado election law states no person can offer or permit a person to offer, for his benefit, “any bribe or promise of gain in the nature of a bribe” to a voter to induce them to sign a petition.

Warning Letter – Roybal

Earlier this month, Roybal said in a written statement from his campaign he wasn’t aware at the time a discount would be offered, nor that it could violate the law.

“After this issue was brought to my attention, my campaign and I researched the rules and understand why the question was raised,” he previously told The Gazette. “If I’d had a full understanding of the rules at the time, I would have intervened.”

Colorado candidates can earn their spot on a ballot in two ways: They must either earn at least 30% of the votes at the primary assembly or collect enough signatures. Roybal petitioned on.

Forty-three of the 1,500 signatures Roybal submitted to obtain candidacy were collected at the shooting range on Feb. 20, Chostner’s investigation found. Roybal needed 1,000 valid signatures to get onto the primary ballot. His petition was certified March 8, Chostner said. Challenges to a candidate’s petition must come within five days after it is deemed sufficient, according to Colorado election law.

Chostner said in his letter he did not believe Roybal’s actions affected his ability to obtain certification because Roybal submitted “an overwhelming number of untested signatures” that would have allowed him to petition on. Chostner said state election law does not allow those 43 signatures to be stricken from the petition because Dent’s complaint came “well after the five-day challenge period.” For those reasons, Chostner said he did not believe a jury would convict Roybal.

El Paso County sheriff’s candidate accused of bribery involving ‘Dragon Man’

Todd Watkins, Roybal’s other opponent in the Republican sheriff’s primary, said Chostner’s reasoning for his decision was a “red herring.”

“He issued that warning because there’s probable cause to charge,” Watkins said. The complaint “wasn’t challenging the petition signatures. This is a criminal act. A cop is bribing people.”

In his letter, Chostner wrote that his research on violations involving bribery of petition signers found “no prior case of this nature, making it an issue of first impression.”

“That’s just categorically false,” Watkins said.

In July 2008, then Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey cited Thomas Coombes for one count of bribery of petition signers for allegedly offering a free pair of sunglasses to passersby if they signed election petitions.

Chostner declined to answer The Gazette’s question directly about possible precedent set in similar cases, saying his letters to Roybal and Bernstein “speak for themselves.”

Roybal will face Democratic candidate John Foley in the sheriff’s race this November.