Colorado man accused of tampering with ballot-marking machine

The Pueblo Police Department arrested a man accused of tampering with a ballot marking machine during Colorado's June 28 primary. 

Richard Patton, a 31-year-old from Pueblo, has been charged with tampering with a voting machine — a class 5 felony under state law — and cybercrime, which is a misdemeanor. 

The arrest, which occurred Thursday morning, marks the first potential prosecution after Colorado enacted a new law safeguarding elections against potential threats to voting equipment. The Colorado Election Security Act, which went into effect in June, makes it a felony to tamper with voting equipment or allow unauthorized access to voting equipment.