Inmate accused of plotting to kill state lawmaker

MARQUETTE, Mich. (AP) -- A 43-year-old Upper Peninsula prison inmate serving time for soliciting a murder in 2005 was arraigned last Thursday on accusations he plotted the kidnapping and murder of a Michigan legislator who represents an area near his former home in Ingham County. Larry Taylor was arraigned in Marquette on a charge of solicitation for murder, said state police spokeswoman Shanon Banner. Taylor remains in custody at the Baraga Correctional Facility in the western Upper Peninsula. Prison officials intercepted a letter Sept. 9 detailing Taylor's plot against state Rep. Barb Byrum, Banner said in an email. Byrum is a Democrat from Onondaga, near Lansing. Taylor was at the Marquette Branch Prison at the time, according to Banner. "Investigators contacted the (Michigan State Police) Negaunee Post, who with the assistance of the MSP Major Case Unit, started an undercover operation that culminated in Taylor calling an undercover officer to discuss the details of the plot," Banner said. State troopers arrested him Sept. 26, she said. Taylor is serving time in a 2005 Lansing-area murder solicitation case, according to state prison records. In 2006, an Ingham County judge sentenced him to serve between 33 years, four months and 50 years in prison. The new charge carries a possible sentence of up to life. Banner said she didn't have details on that case but said the target was someone other than Byrum. Banner said she didn't know if Taylor has a lawyer. At the time the plot was uncovered, Byrum issued a statement thanking state police for uncovering the plot. "Because this is an active and ongoing investigation, and to protect the privacy of my family, I will be making no further comments about this matter," the legislator said. Byrum is in her third two-year term in the state House. Authorities haven't disclosed why Byrum was being targeted. Published: Mon, Oct 10, 2011