Appeals court tosses 2 more convictions in Whitmer kidnap plot

Two more men convicted in the 2020 plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have had their convictions overturned by the Michigan Court of Appeals.

Pete Musico and Paul Bellar on Monday had their convictions vacated and their case was sent back to Jackson County for further proceedings. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said her office plans to appeal the court's decision, in a statement shortly after the Court of Appeals decision was released.

The three-judge panel, made up of Judges Michael Kelly, Sima Patel and Daniel Korobkin, found in its reversal that kidnapping is not a violent felony, following the decision it made in the case of Joseph Morrison, who was tried with Musico and Bellar. Morrison's conviction was overturned in June.

Bellar, Morrison and Musico were convicted of providing material aid to terrorists, being members of a gang in connection with the kidnapping plot and felony firearm in 2022 in connection with the 2020 plot. The jury found they were associates of plot ringleaders Adam Fox and Barry Croft, who were convicted in federal court of kidnapping conspiracy and conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction.

The jury determined that the three men ― Morrison; Morrison's father-in-law, Musico; and their acquaintance, Bellar — were early joiners and founders of the Wolverine Watchmen militia, which helped train Fox and Croft for their plot to kidnap Whitmer.

Musico was sentenced to 12 to 20 years in prison, the most severe sentence of the three. Morrison was originally sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison, but with Wilson's sentence correction, will have to serve a minimum of six years instead of 10. Bellar was sentenced to seven to 20 years in prison.

These sentences and their convictions have all now been overturned. The cases will return to the Jackson County Circuit Court, though Nessel indicated her office plans to appeal the Court of Appeals' decision to the Michigan Supreme Court.

“A previous ruling used linguistic gymnastics to overturn the conviction of an extremist. Now, that broken precedent has legally bound this Court of Appeals panel to reverse the convictions of two more dangerous criminals," Nessel said in a statement. "It is clear that all three of these defendants engaged in a coordinated plan to kidnap and harm the governor and cause mayhem and destruction across our communities in the process. There is no word to describe this other than violent. My office will not downplay domestic terrorism and will not stand by while criminal statutes meant to preserve public safety are arbitrarily gutted. We have already started the process to appeal the disastrous decision in Mr. Morrison’s case, and we will not hesitate to do the exact same for Mr. Musico and Mr. Bellar.”

The Court of Appeals found that a conviction of providing material support for an act of terrorism cannot be based on a kidnapping offense, as kidnapping is not a violent crime. While Musico and Bellar did not argue this in their appeals, Morrison did and the appeals court panel used Morrison's argument for his co-defendant's appeals.

"That (instructional) error requires reversal because it allowed the jurors to find (Morrison) guilty on an invalid basis," the court's majority wrote. "Given that the trial court specifically instructed the jury to consider kidnapping as a violent felony and that the jury heard considerable testimony about the plot to kidnap Governor Whitmer, the likelihood that [Morrison] was actually convicted, at least in part, on an invalid basis tainted the jury’s verdict."

Under Michigan law, terrorism-related charges require proof of the commission of, or plans to commit, a "violent felony," which is defined as involving "the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against an individual," according to the June opinion.

While Michigan's law related to kidnapping initially involved language referring to "forcibly or secretly" confining someone, the June order noted that it was amended in 2006 to remove all references to force.

The panel of judges in the Morrison case acknowledged that the broader plot alleged in the Whitmer kidnapping case included harming or killing law enforcement and politicians, including the governor ― which would qualify as a violent felony ― but the jury also was told it could find kidnapping to be a violent felony that would establish terrorism.

Attorneys for Musico and Bellar said during oral arguments earlier this month that the court should go a step further than Morrison and dismiss the cases against their clients altogether, rather than allow a retrial.

"The question is whether you can still seek retrial after presenting a very patently insufficient basis for your conviction," said Jason Eggert, an attorney for Musico. "We argue that that is not, should not, be permitted."

Eggert did not immediately respond Monday to a request for comment.

Ronald Ambrose, Bellar's attorney, said Monday Bellar should never have been charged.

"He completely disassociated himself from the Wolverine Watchmen and was in South Carolina when the imbecilic plan was hatched by some radicals," Ambrose wrote in an email. "I am looking forward to getting Mr. Bellar released."

_____