We’ve been saying it for almost two years now: the left’s attempt to link members of a Michigan militia to the Tea Party and paint all anti-big government conservatives as proto-terrorists was FOS. And the government’s case against Hutaree was nothing but smoke and mirrors. And now, finally, Uncle Sam’s attempt to send the Hutaree to hoosegow has gone the full Oakland. There is no there there. There never really was . . .
Despite the best efforts of an inside informant and FBI plant to get the Hutaree to commit illegal acts, a federal judge flushed the government’s charges that the group planned a war against the United States, wanted to use weapons of mass destruction and plotted to kill Michigan and federal cops.
Saying, in effect, that the activities and idle talk of a bunch of white guys running around in the woods doesn’t amount to conspiracy against the government, U.S. District Judge Victoria Roberts granted acquittal requests on the most serious charges facing the Hutarees. Hutarinos? Hutarians? Whatever.
In yet another public embarrassment for the Holder Justice Department, the only thing remaining for prosecutors to argue now are some relatively low level weapons charges.
As lenconnect.com reports, the whole sedition and rebellion rap just didn’t pass the smell test. No matter what frequencies Hutarree leader David Stone may have thought were coming in loud and clear on his dental work.
“The court is aware that protected speech and mere words can be sufficient to show a conspiracy. In this case, however, they do not rise to that level,” the Judge said.
Defense lawyers say highly offensive remarks about police and the government were wrongly turned into a high-profile criminal case that drew public praise from U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, who called Hutaree a “dangerous organization.”
By those standards, there are more than a few TTAG commenters who should probably expect a knock at the door.