Two members of the Hutaree militia have a hearing today to request modifications to their bond agreements with the federal government. Both David Stone Jr. and Jacob Ward want their electronic ankle bracelets removed, and now that Stone is 21-years-old, he wants to be allowed to drink too.
Federal officials said in a filing that they’re cool with lifting the ban on consumption of alcohol and a stop to drug testing, but they wouldn’t budge on the ankle bracelets.
The government, federal prosecutors wrote in a motion, “believes that both defendants remain risks of flight and dangers to the community.”
Attorneys for Stone disagree.
“The Defendant has a young child under the age of two and a fiancee, is working diligently at a nearby farm, and studying to obtain his General Equivalency Diploma,” federal defenders wrote on Stone’s behalf.
“Stone, Jr. wishes to interact with his young son and fiance in ways currently prevented or severely strained by the conditions of home confinement and electronic monitoring,” they wrote. “These stringent conditions have also restricted Stone, Jr.’s options for child care while he is working, as well as his flexibility in the hours worked,” they wrote.
