It's a 180 on Conviction of Man Tied to Whitmer Kidnap Plot

Newser ^ | 06 10 2026 | Jenn Gidman

[yesthatjallen]

A key conviction tied to the plot to abduct Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer just got tossed by a state appeals court. A three-judge panel on Tuesday vacated the domestic terrorism-related convictions of Joseph Morrison, ruling that jurors in his case were misinstructed and that prosecutors leaned on a misreading of Michigan's antiterrorism law, per the New York Times. Morrison, linked by prosecutors to the Wolverine Watchmen militia and sentenced to four to 20 years behind bars, was found guilty of providing material support for an act of terrorism and illegal gang membership.

The court said the state wrongly used kidnapping as the underlying "violent felony" for the terrorism charge, noting that kidnapping doesn't meet that definition under Michigan law, undermining the verdict. Per the Detroit News, the state law on kidnapping originally included language that indicated someone who was kidnapped had been "forcibly or secretly" taken. In 2006, the legislation was amended to strip any references to force. Therefore, "because the 'use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force' is not an element of kidnapping, kidnapping is not a 'violent felony' falling within the definition of an 'act of terrorism,'" the judges wrote in their Tuesday ruling.

SNIP

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TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 2006; gretchenwhitmer; josephmorrison; kidnapping; michigan; militia; whitmer; wolverinewatchmen

[Skwor]

Imagine that a liberal kangaroo court and jury acts accordingly. No surprises.

The real surprise is the appeal actually is noticing it.

[bray]

You going to give him his life back?

[PGalt]

Gretchen Whitmer is EVIL.

[lee martell]

That ‘conviction’ was still hanging on, unresolved?
Most people had forgotten about that farce of a kidnapping.
If Gov. Whitmer ultimately decides not to run for president in 2028, this little caper may be a big reason why.