Directed Acquittal in Seditious Conspiracy Prosecution of Hutaree Militia Members

The 28-page opinion in United States v. Stone, (E.D. Mich. Mar. 27, 2012), is posted here. As readers may recall, the government alleged that the defendants plotted to kill a local policeman in hopes of attracting a large crowd of law enforcement officials to a funeral, then to attack the funeral in order to precipitate a more general conflict against the government. In brief, Judge Roberts concluded that the government had not presented sufficient evidence in its case-in-chief to sustain the possibility of a jury finding that there was such an agreement (at least as to the parts that would involve the federal government, as opposed to local law enforcement) and therefore granted the Rule 29 motion as to seven total counts in the indictment.  The case will now continue as to other counts against two of the defendants.