Michigan Appeals Court overturns conviction of man linked to Whitmer kidnapping plot
The Michigan Court of Appeals reversed the 2022 conviction of Joseph Morrison, ruling that kidnapping cannot serve as the basis for his terrorism-related charges, and sent the case back for further proceedings.
A three-judge panel of the Michigan Court of Appeals unanimously reversed the conviction of Joseph Morrison, a Jackson County resident found guilty in 2022 of providing material support for terrorist acts tied to a plot to kidnap Governor Gretchen Whitmer. The court held that kidnapping does not qualify as a violent felony, making it an improper foundation for the terrorism charge, and found that erroneous jury instructions had tainted the verdict.
The appellate opinion noted that the trial-court verdict form asked jurors only whether Morrison was guilty of “Providing Material Support for an Act of Terrorism,” preventing a clear determination of whether the conviction rested on kidnapping or another offense. Consequently, the court vacated the conviction and remanded the case for further proceedings.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said the ruling will be appealed. > "My office will not allow this to stand. We will not accept violent threats against our elected leaders, and we will not abide the arbitrary defanging of the criminal statutes that preserve public safety and order in the State of Michigan," she said.
