Jury selection starts in plot of four to kidnap governor of Michigan

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — With secret recordings and other evidence, prosecutors are pledging to show how four men were united behind a wild plot to kidnap Michigan's governor in response to her aggressive steps to slow down Covid-19 during the early months of the pandemic.

Jury selection began Tuesday for a trial that could last more than a month in federal court in western Michigan, with U.S. District Court Judge Robert Jonker telling prospective jurors: "This isn't your average criminal case."

Jonker emphasized that prospective jurors must put aside any personal feelings about politics, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and her administration's response to Covid-19 to fairly hear the case. Otherwise, he said, they cannot serve.

In 2020, Whitmer, a Democrat, was trading taunts with thenPresident Donald Trump over his administration's response to Covid-19. Her critics, meanwhile, were regularly protesting at the Michigan Capitol, clogging streets around the statehouse and legally carrying semiautomatic rifles into the building.

During that turbulent time, when stay-home orders were in place and the economy was restricted, Adam Fox, Brandon Caserta, Barry Croft Jr. and Daniel Harris were coming up with a plot to snatch Whitmer, prosecutors say.

They're accused of taking critical steps over several months, including secret messaging, gun drills in the woods and a night drive to northern Michigan to scout her second home and figure out how to blow up a bridge.

The FBI, which had infiltrated the group, said it thwarted the plan with the arrests of six men in October 2020. Two of them, Ty Garbin and Kaleb Franks, have pleaded guilty and will appear as crucial witnesses for the government, giving jurors an inside view of what was planned.

Garbin, for example, said Fox, the alleged ringleader, wanted the men to chip in for a $4,000 explosive large enough to destroy a bridge near Whitmer's home and distract police during a kidnapping.

"The blood of tyrants needs to be shed," Garbin quoted Caserta as saying during a meeting.

Garbin and Franks insist no one in the group acted because of excessive influence by agents or undercover informants.

"It is not the end of the case for the defense, but it's a big obstacle to overcome," John Smietanka, a former federal prosecutor, said of the pair's cooperation. "It's going to come down to the credibility of witnesses plus the effect of any extrinsic evidence, like tapes."

Indeed, prosecutors said much of the evidence will be the defendants' own words gathered during secret recordings. The government will also offer screenshots of text messages as well as photos and videos posted on social media.

Ahead of the trial, defense lawyers panned the case, especially the "staggering use" of informants. They deny any conspiracy to kidnap Whitmer and have signaled an entrapment defense.

"The agents and snitches recruited the defendants, arranged meetings, paid for travel, paid for hotels, rented cars, produced promotional videos demonstrating explosives, purchased equipment, vetted new members, hatched the ideas and directed the operations," said Joshua Blanchard, who is Croft's attorney.