Prosecutor: Kansas militia members wanted to kill immigrants

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The government plans to present evidence that the men manufactured homemade explosives and tested them. It also plans to present testimony showing the men tried to recruit other members of the Kansas Security Force to join them, and warned them not to tip off law enforcement about the plan. Some militia members will testify they didn’t like Muslims but refused to join the plan to kill people.

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Attorneys for the defence said the FBI set up the men with a paid informant and all the talk about violence wasn’t serious. They said that the men had a right to free speech and association under the Constitution. The FBI acknowledges it paid Day more than $32,000 for expenses including a used vehicle after his broke down.

“This case will challenge your understanding and your thoughts of the Constitution,” attorney Richard Federico told the jury, acknowledging some of what they will hear during the trial will offend them.

“And that’s OK — hatred is not a crime in this country,” he said.

Another defence attorney, Jim Pratt, said the alleged crimes occurred during a heated presidential election campaign that had split the country, and that the media fed this with nonstop reporting. He said conservative media outlets reported that President Barack Obama was letting refugees who had not been vetted into the country, and liberal media outlets reported that then-Republican nominee Donald Trump was going to kick immigrants out of the country.

“Hate ruled the day and the ratings,” Pratt said.

He said the militia members were simply talking about these politically-charged issues at the time.

“The FBI, rather than try to calm these fears, fomented them and inflamed them through (informant) Dan Day,” Pratt said.

But prosecutor Berkower said it wasn’t just talk.

“The evidence will show that these weren’t just words,” Berkower said. “These hours of planning were not just talk. It was action.”

Roxana Hegeman, The Associated Press