Seven Men Involved in Gretchen Whitmer Kidnapping Plot Sentenced to Years-Long Prison Sentences

     December 2022 was a good month for accountability in the domestic terrorist plot to kidnap Governor Gretchen Whitmer, hold her captive, possibly execute her for "treason," and blow up bridges and kill police officers to make their getaway, among other ideas. Up until this point, the only accountability we had seen was Ty Garbin and Kaleb Franks being sentenced to 2.5 and four years in prison, respectively, after pleading guilty to kidnapping conspiracy and testifying at trial; Garbin has since been released.

     Then came December 15th, when Paul Bellar, expelled from a military academy in South Carolina; Joseph Morrison, the president and founder of the Wolverine Watchmen militia; and Pete Musico, Morrison's father-in-law and roommate and the other co-founder of the Wolverine Watchmen; were sentenced to seven to 20, 10 to 20, and 12 to 20 years in prison, respectively. They were convicted at trial in October of supporting terrorism, gang membership, and felony firearms violations.

     On December 27th, Adam Fox, a career criminal and the co-ringleader of the plot, avoided a life sentence but was sentenced to 16 years in prison with five years of supervised released after being convicted of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and conspiracy to obtain a weapon of mass destruction at trial in August.

     That night, Barry Croft, the other co-ringleader of the plot, was interviewed by a reporter and went on an anti-government rant. Croft is possibly the most interesting of the defendants. The vice president of the Three Percenters chapter in Wisconsin and the owner of a Delaware trucking company, he received a pardon from Delaware Governor John Carney in 2019 for a trio of felony burglary and drug convictions in the late 1990s. The mother of his children was apparently even more of a mess than he is, as he and his girlfriend had custody of all three of Croft's minor daughters. Croft, who often wore a tricorne hat and was seen in pictures with a "We The People" tattoo on his forearm and holding a "Boogaloo" flag, was allegedly the "ideas guy" of the plot and, in spite of not being involved in the encrypted messages with most of the other conspirators, was caught in a shocking audio recording building a bomb with his youngest daughter in the room and having to tell her to stay away from it. Also convicted of possession of an unregistered explosive device along with the same two felonies as Fox, Croft received the longest sentence out of any of the men sentenced so far: 19 years and seven months (235 months, or 19.6 years) in prison with five years of probation afterward.

     This month, we saw steps toward accountability against the final five defendants in the plot: Brian Higgins, the only Wisconsin resident charged in the plot; William and Michael Null, twin brothers who helped storm the Michigan Capitol; Eric Molitor; and Shawn Fix, four of whom were involved in scouting out Gretchen Whitmer's vacation home, were bound over for trial. In Michigan, this means that probable cause has been established that a crime was committed and that, unless a suspect pleads guilty, a trial will occur. At the next court date, two weeks later, the judge consolidated the case. This means that the final five men charged (with the same crimes as Bellar, Morrison, and Musico), collectively known as the "Antrim Defendants" over the county they were charged in, will go on trial at the same time. This is usually bad news for the defense attorneys, who try to separate their clients' individual responsibility for the actions of others, but it also presents a risk: it's more likely than not that all defendants are convicted or all defendants are acquitted. Ultimately, their fate will be determined by a jury of their peers in a Traverse City courthouse on a date yet to be determined in 2023.

     For now, all of my attention is focused on following the cases of the "Antrim Defendants." However, I will reiterate my obligatory call: if for no other reason than the arrogance they have demonstrated in the months since their acquittal in federal court, state prosecutors can and should charge Wolverine Watchmen Brandon Caserta and Daniel Harris with gang membership and supporting an act of terrorism if they are able to get a clean sweep with the Traverse City trial. 12 out of 14 terrorists convicted would be a major victory for democracy, the rule of law, and prosecutors. 14 out of 14 would be even better.