Sumpter man sentenced to 3-20 years in prison in plot to kidnap Whitmer

Antrim County Circuit Court Judge Charles Hamlyn sentenced Shawn Michael Fix, 41, of Sumpter Township to 3-20 years in prison. Fix’s co-defendant Brian Higgins of Wisconsin was sentenced to 36 months of probation.
The two had pled guilty earlier this year to providing material support to an act of terrorism by helping to locate and surveil the governor’s vacation home in a failed 2020 plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. The sentence on Dec. 7 ended nearly three years of legal proceedings.
Both apologized to Whitmer before hearing their sentences.
Higgins was represented by Traverse City attorney Michael Naughton of North Coast Legal. He said his client had multiple mental breakdowns while held in jails for 217 days.
In a sentencing memorandum, Naughton said Higgins attempted suicide multiple times. He was treated at Munson Medical Center and later released on bond to return to Wisconsin.
Judge Hamlyn said Higgins’ probation will focus specifically on mental health and trauma.
But Hamlyn said Fix’s actions implied he wanted to be involved in the plot, including hosting meetings at his rural Sumpter home and participating in military-style drills.
Three of Fix’s and Higgins’ co-defendants were found not guilty in the same court after a jury trial in September.
The trial of Eric Molitor, and brothers Michael and William Null ran more than three weeks.
Of the original 14 men that were charged in state and federal court since the plot was revealed, nine have been convicted while five have been acquitted.