WELD COUNTY, Colo. — A woman accused of shooting at authorities in Weld County in 2020 has been convicted and sentenced to prison.
Sarah Jesser, 44, was sentenced to 18 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections after she pleaded guilty to attempted second-degree murder in February 2022, according to the Nineteenth Judicial District Attorney's Office.
The charges stemmed from an incident on Feb. 13, 2020. That day, a Weld County deputy attempted to contact Jesser at the Econo Lodge located at 10811 W. Interstate 25 Frontage Road in Weld County. At the time, she was wanted on multiple warrants. Two officers from the Firestone Police Department joined the deputy, according to the district attorney's office.
When the group arrived at the hotel and opened the door to Jesser's room, she opened fire on them from inside. One Firestone officer shot at her, which was justified the following month by Weld District Attorney Michael Rourke.
“The defendant made it clear that she knew law enforcement was at her door," Chief Deputy District Attorney Anthony Perea said. "Yet she still made the deliberate decision to pull the trigger and shoot at officers when they entered her room.”
At the sentencing hearing, Perea said "it's nothing short of a miracle" that the court room wasn't hearing a homicide case in connection to the shooting.