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Michigan

Judge orders Michigan prosecutors to release documents related to Whitmer kidnapping plot

Records can't be shielded under Michigan's Freedom of Information Act

Associated Press
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  • Eric VanDussen was looking for certain documents relating to the kidnapping plot of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, when his open records request was denied.
  • VanDussen filed a lawsuit against the rejected request, leading to Court of Claims Judge James Redford noting that the exhibits had already been introduced in an "open court, in a public hearing, in a public trial, in a public courthouse."
  • The judge ordered state prosecutors to release certain documents that were used as evidence in the trial against the men charged in the kidnapping plot of Gov. Whitmer.

A judge on Wednesday ordered state prosecutors to release certain documents used as evidence against several men charged with aiding a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Eric VanDussen, a videographer and freelance journalist, filed a lawsuit after the attorney general's office rejected his public records request. He is working on a documentary about political extremism.

The state claimed the records would interfere with law enforcement proceedings and possibly spoil an upcoming trial.

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But Court of Claims Judge James Redford noted that the exhibits were already introduced in "open court, in a public hearing, in a public trial, in a public courthouse."

Whitmer during visit to Latvia

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer looks on during her visit to Riga Castle in Riga, Latvia. A judge recently ordered Michigan prosecutors to release documents in relation to the kidnapping plot of Whitmer. (Gints Ivuskans/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)

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The records can't be shielded under Michigan's Freedom of Information Act, Redford said.

Three men face trial soon in Antrim County, but the records sought by VanDussen already have been used in other court proceedings, the judge said.

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There was no immediate comment from the attorney general's office.