An Alaska militia member will serve nearly 26 years in a federal prison after being convicted of conspiracy to commit murder and to amass weapons.
Lonnie Vernon was sentenced today during a combative session in U.S. District Court in Anchorage, at which he denied the authority of the court, the judge and prosecutors.
Judge Robert Bryan told Vernon that he was sorry Vernon’s life had come to this. Vernon responded he was sorry people like Bryan run the country.
The 57-year-old Vernon, along with his wife Karen, earlier pleaded guilty to planning to kill a federal judge and an Internal Revenue Service officer in a property tax dispute.
Karen Vernon was sentenced to 12 years in prison. The defense attorney argued for a five-year sentence for the 67-year-old. They say she was influenced in the plot to kill officials by her husband, but otherwise hasn’t even had a traffic ticket in her life. Prosecutors asked for more than 15 years.
Lonnie Vernon was a member of the Fairbanks-based Alaska Peacekeepers Militia.
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