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Lawmakers, Police, Governor Warned in May About Armed Militia, Threats

Rejected submission by upstart at 2020-10-11 08:52:47
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Lawmakers, police, governor warned in May about armed militia, threats [record-eagle.com]:

LANSING, Michigan — Lawmakers and other Michigan officials were warned in May about possible ill-intentions of armed militia, and of radio communications suggesting supporters could force their way into the state Capitol Building, the Traverse City Record-Eagle has learned.

The Michigan State Police on Friday confirmed receipt of a May 20 email, including a link to a YouTube video [youtube.com] filmed inside the Capitol and narrated by a man the author of the email has since identified as William Null.

Null was among the 13 men arraigned Thursday on federal or state felony terrorism and firearms charges following an investigation into a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and overthrow the government.

“There was no action or request required of the MSP,” said Shanon Banner, MSP public affairs manager,” so upon receiving the message, I forwarded it on to our Special Operations Division for their situational awareness since they have responsibility for security at the Capitol.”

The email, from Benzonia, Michigan videographer and freelance journalist Eric VanDussen, was sent to the Governor’s Office, the Attorney General’s Office, all members of the Michigan Legislature and the Michigan Capital Commission, information provided to the Record-Eagle shows.

“There’s state troopers and capital security, and they have side arms, but there’s multiple individuals standing over them with semi-automatic weapons,” VanDussen said. “With what they are saying was their plan, it’s crazy that no one put an emphasis on curtailing that type of weaponry going into the Michigan Capital.”

“Hopefully,” VanDussen added, “this is going to be a wake-up call.”

As of today, guns still are allowed inside the Capitol.

A bill co-sponsored by Dayna Polehanki, which would ban all firearms from the building, is languishing in the Committee on Government Operations, where bills go to, “sit and die,” Polehanki said Friday.

“There are two entities that have legal authority to ban firearms from our Capitol,” Polehanki said. “One is the Legislature, the other is the Capitol Commission.”

The Capitol Commission was created in 2013 to manage the building, preserve its history and maintain the facility as a working museum that also functions as as office building, said John Truscott, commission vice-chair.

“Law enforcement was well aware of the situation and the people involved,” Truscott said in an email. “The Capitol Commission does not have a role in enforcing the laws or dealing with criminal issues.”

“By law, The Senate and House govern their respective Chambers and office space, not the Capitol Commission,” Truscott added. “That’s why the House and Senate sergeants were front and center dealing with these individuals — with the full support of Michigan State Police.”

The AG’s office issued an opinion [michigan.gov] May 8, confirming that the Commission has the legal authority to prohibit the presence of firearms in the state Capitol, if it chooses to do so.

“They’ve put off doing anything for seven months in a row,” Polehanki said. “They were supposed to meet Monday but that meeting was canceled and I was told it was because there was nothing to put on the agenda.”

Polehanki said she does not feel safe and keeps a bulletproof vest under her desk “in case anything happens again like what happened April 30.”

VanDussen described the conversations and behavior of those in the April 30 video as “extremely distressing,” which inspired him to send it to more than 100 state officials, he said.

State Sen. Curt Vanderwall said his staff may have seen the email and YouTube video but he had not; Polehanki’s staffer Dan Centers said their policy was to forward any concerning email to the senate sergeant at arms and that’s what he likely did with the email from VanDussen.

Much of Null’s video, which VanDussen said he copied from the Facebook page of Phil Robinson, a co-founder of the Michigan Liberty Militia, is filled with vulgarities and repeated discussions about possible violence.

Null appears unmasked in the video, both in Lansing’s Capitol rotunda, as well as in the gallery of the building’s chambers. He wears a “Michigan Liberty Militia” patch and occasionally speaks over a two-way radio with others outside the Capitol building, or in other parts of the building, seemingly coordinating efforts to push past security officials’ attempts to limit capacity amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

About 19 minutes into the video, a bystander tells Null: “I’m not going to lie, though — the shooting starts happening and I’m heading up north, you know that.”

Null quickly responds, “Not me, dude. I’m going to have fun hunting,” he can be heard saying, followed by laughter.

In the May email, VanDussen highlighted the men’s tactical behavior as particularly disturbing.

“The men depicted in the video were also communicating by walkie-talkies with their fellow militia members that were situated at various locations throughout the Capitol building and grounds. They were equipped like a SWAT team and they suggested — over their walkie-talkies — that their companions outside should force their way past the MSP officers to gain access to the Capitol.”

Whitmer’s press secretary Tiffany Brown and AG press secretary Ryan Jarvi both declined comment, citing the ongoing criminal investigation.

To view or purchase photos, visit photos.record-eagle.com. [record-eagle.com]

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