Jury picked for Michigan Gov. Whitmer kidnap plot trial
Source: Associated Press
Jury picked for Michigan Gov. Whitmer kidnap plot trial
By MICHAEL TARM, ED WHITE and SARA BURNETT
March 8, 2022
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) A jury was selected Tuesday for the trial of four men charged with plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020, extraordinary allegations of violence planned against an elected official that led the presiding judge to advise: This isnt your average criminal case.
Opening statements were scheduled for Wednesday in the federal court in Grand Rapids. Prosecutors have said the men were angry about pandemic restrictions the Democratic governor imposed, and that they will present secret recordings and other evidence against the men, including of a trip to check Whitmers vacation home and training with weapons and explosives.
Defense attorneys say the men deny any conspiracy to kidnap Whitmer, and have signaled an entrapment defense, criticizing the governments use of undercover FBI agents and confidential informants.
Eleven women and seven men were selected to serve as jurors, with 12 who will decide the case and six alternates, though the court did not make clear Tuesday which jurors are alternates. Before they left the courtroom, U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker told the jury to stay off social media and not discuss the case with family.
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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/covid-health-donald-trump-michigan-gretchen-whitmer-69bcbdd1b929eb49cafc48b1161e15c3
FILE - This combination of photos provided by the Kent County Sheriff and the Delaware Department of Justice shows, top row from left, Brandon Caserta and Barry Croft; and bottom row from left, Adam Dean Fox and Daniel Harris. The four members of anti-government groups are facing trial in March 2022 on federal charges accusing them in a plot to abduct Michigan's Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020. Jury selection begins Tuesday, March 8, 2022, in a trial the presiding judge at the U.S. District Court courthouse in Grand Rapids, Mich., said could take over a month. (Kent County Sheriff, Delaware Department of Justice via AP File)