Joshua Clough, one of nine members of the Hutaree militia in Michigan arrested by federal authorities in the spring of 2010, will be the first militia member to plead guilty.
Clough — also known as “Mouse” — has a plea hearing scheduled for Nov. 8, according to a court notification first reported by the Detroit Free Press. The details of his guilty plea weren’t clear and his lawyer did not immediately respond to TPM’s request for comment.
The Detroit Free Press reports that another defendants, Jacob Ward, has been declared incompetent to stand trial. The cases against the other defendants is set to go to trial on Feb. 7.
Hutaree members allegedly “planned to kill an unidentified member of local law enforcement and then attack the law enforcement officers who gather in Michigan for the funeral.” An undercover FBI agent had infiltrated the group, even serving as best man for the leader of the militia.
The FBI has said it is expanding its work with local law enforcement agencies to combat militia extremists.
Ryan J. Reilly
Ryan J. Reilly is a D.C.-based reporter for TPM. Prior to joining TPM, he worked for a news website covering the Justice Department and was a researcher for Bloomberg News. His email address is ryan(at)talkingpointsmemo.com.
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