A judge on Thursday handed down the longest prison terms so far in the plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, sentencing three men who forged an early alliance with a leader of the scheme before the FBI broke it up in 2020. Pete Musico was sentenced to a minimum of 12 years in prison, followed by his son-in-law Joe Morrison at 10 years and Paul Bellar at seven.

They did not have a direct role in the conspiracy but were members of a paramilitary group that trained with Adam Fox, who faces a possible life sentence in a separate case in federal court.

Morrison, Musico and Bellar will be eligible for parole after serving their terms.

The trio was convicted in October of providing material support for a terrorist act, which carries a maximum term of 20 years, and two other crimes.

Speaking in a recorded video, Whitmer urged Jackson County Judge Thomas Wilson to "impose a sentence that meets the gravity of the damage they have done to our democracy." ...