Michigan teen sentenced to probation for felony firearms, other charges

CARO, Mich. (WILX) - A member of The Base – a national white supremacist group that advocates for violence against the United States – was sentenced by a Tuscola County judge for multiple charges on Friday.

Wednesday, Tristan Webb was convicted for gang felonies, felony firearms and conspiracy to train with firearms for civil disorder. Friday, he was sentenced to five years probation.

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Established in 2018, The Base is a White supremacy organization that publicly encourages violence and criminal acts against the U.S. and claims to be training for a race war to establish White ethnonationalist rule in areas of the country, including the Upper Peninsula. The group also traffics in Nazi ideology and extreme anti-Semitism, at one point requiring members to read neo-Nazi books that encourage ‘the collapse of Western civilization.’

Michigan Attorney General Nessel described The Base as a domestic terrorist organization.

Webb, 19, became involved with the group when he was 17-years-old. Although young, Webb hosted a “hate camp” at his property in 2019 for the Michigan cell of The Base. “Hate camp” is a term used by the group to describe firearms tactical training where various paramilitary-style techniques were taught to participants.

Members of The Base, “Invictus Youth,” and “Aryan Resistance” attended, and soon after Webb underwent a vetting process to become a full member of The Base.

Judge Amy Gierhardt deferred jail time and instead sentenced Webb to a probation term with supervision from the Court. Specifically, Judge Gierhardt imposed the the five-year probation for gang felonies, three years of probation with a one year deferred jail sentence for conspiracy to train with firearms for civil disorder and a two-year delayed sentence for felony firearm.

A charge of larceny against Webb was dismissed as part of a plea agreement reached in May.

Setting precedent, the convictions secured against Webb and other members of The Base in Tuscola County marked the first in Michigan history that conspiring to train for a civil disorder was charged.

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