PORTAGE, Wis. – A Wisconsin man accused in a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer should be extradited to Michigan, but he will be given a chance to appeal first, a judge ruled.
Brian Higgins was allegedly part of a crew conducting surveillance of the governor’s vacation home for the kidnapping plot. He is charged with material support of an act of terrorism.
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The Wisconsin Dells man, 52, is jailed in Columbia County until the appeal of his extradition is decided.
Defense attorney Christopher Van Wagner argued that Michigan extradition order should not be granted, saying Whitmer has a conflict of interest in the matter because she is the victim, WLUK-TV reported.
Columbia County Circuit Court Judge Todd Hepler rejected the defense’s line of reasoning.
“Mr. Higgins is not being deported to some third-world kangaroo court,” Hepler said during a Zoom hearing Tuesday. “He will enjoy all of the constitutional rights guaranteed to every American citizen, including due process of law.”
Higgins is among 14 men charged in the domestic terrorism case. The plotters planned to storm Michigan’s state Capitol building and kidnap officials, including the Democratic governor, officials said.