Morning Briefing: Jurors Deliberating at Trial of Michigan Governor Kidnapping Plot
Morning Briefing: Jurors Deliberating at Trial of Michigan Governor Kidnapping Plot
Jurors began deliberating at the trial of four men accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer; the defendants are members of the far right Three Percenters and Wolverine Watchmen.
Morning Briefing: Jurors began deliberating at the trial of four men accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. The case “pits domestic terrorism allegations against accusations of entrapment and prosecutorial overreach.”
Six men were initially charged but two pleaded guilty before trial—Ty Garbin plead guilty and was sentenced to six years in prison, and Kaleb Franks plead guilty but has yet to be sentenced. Adam Fox, Barry Croft Jr., Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta are charged with conspiracy to kidnap.
Fox and Croft are affiliated with the Three Percenters, a far right anti-government militia group. Harris and Caserta are affiliated with the Wolverine Watchmen, similar far right anti-government militia group.
Nils Kessler, Assistant U.S. Attorney, explained to the jury during closing arguments how the defendants planned out the kidnapping: "They trained to kidnap the governor, they cased her house in the middle of the night, they mapped it out, they planned it, they gathered weapons and bombs. That is the conspiracy that they are charged with, and in America, it's a crime."
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