Prosecutors say Adam Fox, Brandon Caserta, Barry Croft Jr. and Daniel Harris planned to abduct Governor Gretchen Whitmer from her vacation home in northern Michigan, in a bid to end their perceived like draconian restrictions championed by the Democrat to control the spread of the coronavirus.
The defendants had hoped the kidnapping would spark a second American Civil War ahead of the 2020 presidential election, with the pandemic exacerbating the country’s intense political and cultural polarization, prosecutors say.
During a trial that lasted nearly a month, defense attorneys argued that FBI informants coerced their clients into discussing the conspiracy. The men never made concrete plans on their own and were victims of entrapment and excess by the prosecution, their lawyers claimed.
The four defendants face charges of conspiring to kidnap the governor. Fox, Croft and Harris are also charged with conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction in connection with the kidnapping plot. If convicted, the men might spend the rest of their lives in prison.
Earlier in their deliberations, the jurors asked US District Judge Robert Jonker for a definition of a “weapon”, in an apparent reference to the second charge. They also asked Jonker for transcripts of trial evidence. He refused the request, saying the 3,400 pages of transcripts were not yet available and that jurors had to rely on their memory, the Detroit Free Press reported.
“I’ve been a judge for 15 years, but I’m still a bit breathless when we wait for the jury,” Jonker said Wednesday in reference to the wait for the jury’s verdict, the newspaper reported.
The case highlighted the emergence of militant right-wing organizations in the years following the election of former President Donald Trump in 2016. It also suggests how the pandemic and the government’s efforts to control it have become a divisive issue in American politics, pushing some people to extremes.
Two other men who were originally charged – Ty Garbin and Kalen Franks – entered into plea deals and served as star witnesses for the prosecution during the trial. Garbin is currently serving a six-year sentence, while Franks awaits sentencing.
The four men on trial, plus Garbin and Franks, are among 13 people who were arrested in October 2020 and charged with state or federal crimes in connection with the alleged kidnapping conspiracy. Seven of them face charges in state court.
The FBI said it began tracking the group’s movements following seeing online discussions that included posts regarding the violent overthrow of some state governments. The group’s goal was to end restrictions on social and business activities imposed during the coronavirus pandemic.
Prosecutors also accused them of wanting to start a second American Civil War, while defense attorneys said their clients were often high on drugs and inclined to make “crazy” talk rather than act.
Harris, Caserta and an undercover informant who testified at trial were members of the Wolverine Watchmen, a militia group, prosecutors say. Croft and Fox were members of “Three Percenters”, a similar far-right organization.
