Oath Keepers founder guilty of seditious conspiracy for January 6 involvement

[Mr._Clark]

Mods: Feel free to delete this thread if it's too similar to the old (closed) January 6 thread.

It appears to me that Rhodes avoided going into the U.S. Capital in an effort to avoid criminal charges. Thus, the DOJ indicted him on seditious conspiracy, even though this can be difficult to prove.

>>>WASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Stewart Rhodes, founder of the right-wing Oath Keepers militia group, was found guilty on Tuesday of seditious conspiracy for last year's attack on the U.S. Capitol in a failed bid to overturn then-President Donald Trump's 2020 election loss - an important victory for the Justice Department.

The verdicts against Rhodes and four co-defendants, after three days of deliberations by the 12-member jury, came in the highest-profile trial so far to emerge from the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol, with other high-profile trials due to begin next month. . . .

Rhodes, a Yale Law School-educated former Army paratrooper and disbarred attorney, was . . . convicted on three counts and acquitted on two.<<<

Oath Keepers founder guilty of sedition in U.S. Capitol attack plot

Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, and another leader of the right-wing group, were found guilty on Tuesday of seditious conspiracy for the attack on the U.S. Capitol by Donald Trump supporters, an important win for the Justice Department.

www.reuters.com

And, just in case you're wondering why he wears a patch over his eye, here it is:

"Rhodes, who wears an eye patch after accidentally shooting himself in the face with his own gun . . ."

 

[lovinthehd]

Love the irony in that last comment.

 

[ryanosaur]

A little part of me is dancing a bit over this.

 

[Swerd]

I tend to believe a Yale Law School grad can write his own ticket. But that doesn't even begin to describe Rhodes.

And when are the Feds going after Roger Stone? He is said to be the guy who went between Trump and the far right wing, such as Rhodes.

I'll refrain from dancing now … not until Rhodes gets sentenced to >10 years in a federal supermax prison … better yet, Gitmo.

 

[ryanosaur]

I tend to believe a Yale Law School grad can write his own ticket. But that doesn't even begin to describe Rhodes.

And when are the Feds going after Roger Stone? He is said to be the guy who went between Trump and the far right wing, such as Rhodes.

I'll refrain from dancing now … not until Rhodes gets sentenced to >10 years in a federal supermax prison … better yet, Gitmo.

This is why I’m only “a little part” is dancing “a bit”

 

[Mr._Clark]

And when are the Feds going after Roger Stone? He is said to be the guy who went between Trump and the far right wing, such as Rhodes.

I'll refrain from dancing now … not until Rhodes gets sentenced to >10 years in a federal supermax prison … better yet, Gitmo.

I'm assuming you know this, but Trump commuted Stone's sentence previously:

>>>WASHINGTON — President Trump commuted the sentence of his longtime friend Roger J. Stone Jr. on seven felony crimes on Friday, using the power of his office to spare a former campaign adviser days before Mr. Stone was to report to a federal prison to serve a 40-month term. . . .

The commutation, announced late on a Friday, when potentially damaging news is often released, was the latest action by the Trump administration upending the justice system to help the president’s convicted friends. The Justice Department moved in May to dismiss its own criminal case against Mr. Trump’s former national security adviser Michael T. Flynn, who had pleaded guilty to lying to the F.B.I. And last month, Mr. Trump fired Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States attorney whose office prosecuted Michael D. Cohen, the president’s former personal lawyer, and has been investigating Rudolph W. Giuliani, another of his lawyers.<<<

Trump Commutes Sentence of Roger Stone in Case He Long Denounced (Published 2020)

The president’s friend had been convicted of impeding a congressional inquiry that threatened Mr. Trump.

www.nytimes.com

I'm not sure what sentence Rhodes will get. I have not read the sentencing guidelines, but even if I did it would be a guess.

Here's what the DOJ said about his convictions and the maximum penalties:

>>>WASHINGTON – Elmer Stewart Rhodes III, the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers . . . [was] found guilty by a jury today of seditious conspiracy and other charges for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. . . . Rhodes, 57, of Granbury, Texas, also was found guilty of obstruction of an official proceeding and tampering with documents and proceedings. . . .

The charges of seditious conspiracy, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of an official proceeding, and tampering with documents or proceedings each carry a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. . . . The Court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.<<<

Two Leaders of Oath Keepers Found Guilty of Seditious Conspiracy and Other Charges Related to U.S. Capitol Breach

WASHINGTON – Elmer Stewart Rhodes III, the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers, and Kelly Meggs, the leader of the Florida chapter of the organization, were found guilty by a jury today of seditious conspiracy and other charges for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6...

www.justice.gov

Rhodes lawyer said he'd appeal the conviction, but I give him precisely one snowball's chance in hell of winning on appeal.

 

[Trell]

Now that Trump has announced his candidacy for US president, the following is worth keeping in mind.

>>>Former president Donald Trump said he would issue full pardons and a government apology to rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and violently attacked law enforcement to stop the democratic transfer of power. <<<

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/09/01/trump-jan-6-rioters-pardon/

 

[GO-NAD!]

I'm assuming you know this, but Trump commuted Stone's sentence previously:

>>>WASHINGTON — President Trump commuted the sentence of his longtime friend Roger J. Stone Jr. on seven felony crimes on Friday, using the power of his office to spare a former campaign adviser days before Mr. Stone was to report to a federal prison to serve a 40-month term. . . .

The commutation, announced late on a Friday, when potentially damaging news is often released, was the latest action by the Trump administration upending the justice system to help the president’s convicted friends. The Justice Department moved in May to dismiss its own criminal case against Mr. Trump’s former national security adviser Michael T. Flynn, who had pleaded guilty to lying to the F.B.I. And last month, Mr. Trump fired Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States attorney whose office prosecuted Michael D. Cohen, the president’s former personal lawyer, and has been investigating Rudolph W. Giuliani, another of his lawyers.<<<

Trump Commutes Sentence of Roger Stone in Case He Long Denounced (Published 2020)

The president’s friend had been convicted of impeding a congressional inquiry that threatened Mr. Trump.

www.nytimes.com

I'm not sure what sentence Rhodes will get. I have not read the sentencing guidelines, but even if I did it would be a guess.

Here's what the DOJ said about his convictions and the maximum penalties:

>>>WASHINGTON – Elmer Stewart Rhodes III, the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers . . . [was] found guilty by a jury today of seditious conspiracy and other charges for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. . . . Rhodes, 57, of Granbury, Texas, also was found guilty of obstruction of an official proceeding and tampering with documents and proceedings. . . .

The charges of seditious conspiracy, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of an official proceeding, and tampering with documents or proceedings each carry a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. . . . The Court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.<<<

Two Leaders of Oath Keepers Found Guilty of Seditious Conspiracy and Other Charges Related to U.S. Capitol Breach

WASHINGTON – Elmer Stewart Rhodes III, the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers, and Kelly Meggs, the leader of the Florida chapter of the organization, were found guilty by a jury today of seditious conspiracy and other charges for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6...

www.justice.gov

Rhodes lawyer said he'd appeal the conviction, but I give him precisely one snowball's chance in hell of winning on appeal.

Trump's blatant abuse of his power to grant pardons and clear conflict of interest has certainly cast a pall over the process. It smacks of royal privilege as held historically by monarchs. Ironically - considering that we are a constitutional monarchy - such power does not exist in Canada, nor is it held by any politician. The power to grant pardons resides with the Parole Board of Canada.

 

[GO-NAD!]

Now that Trump has announced his candidacy for US president, the following is worth keeping in mind.

>>>Former president Donald Trump said he would issue full pardons and a government apology to rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and violently attacked law enforcement to stop the democratic transfer of power. <<<

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/09/01/trump-jan-6-rioters-pardon/

Hmmm. If they're in jail, will they be able to vote for him?

 

[j_garcia]

Hmmm. If they're in jail, will they be able to vote for him?

Depends on the state they are incarcerated in. In California, State or Federal you cannot vote, but county jail you can.

 

[Trell]

The Oath Keepers militia leader Stewart Rhodes is likely to face a long prison sentence.

>>>The federal judge presiding over sentencing for Oath Keepers members convicted of seditious conspiracy has ruled that militia leader Stewart Rhodes’ actions amounted to domestic terrorism [bold added].

The finding signals that Rhodes, 58, may face decades in prison when he is formally sentenced later Thursday.

This is an additional level of calculation, this is an additional level of planning, this in additional level of targeting an institution of American democracy at its most important moment – the transfer of power,” District Judge Amit Mehta said of Rhodes.

“He was the one giving the orders,” Mehta added. “He was the one organizing the teams that day. He was the reason they were in fact in Washington DC. Oath Keepers wouldn’t have been there but for Stewart Rhodes, I don’t think anyone contends otherwise. He was the one who gave the order to go, and they went.”

Rhodes was convicted of seditious conspiracy by a Washington, DC, jury in November in a historic criminal trial that was a test of the Justice Department’s ability to hold January 6 rioters accountable and validated prosecutors’ arguments that the breach of the Capitol was a grave threat to American democracy.

His sentence will be the first handed down in over a decade for seditious conspiracy, a charge that has rarely been brought in the century and a half that the statute and its forerunners have been on the books.

Prosecutors have asked Mehta to sentence Rhodes to 25 years behind bars, and to apply enhanced terrorism sentencing penalties. ... <<<

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/25/politics/oath-keepers-sentencing-stewart-rhodes-kelly-meggs/index.html

 

[Trell]

The Oath Keepers militia leader Stewart Rhodes is likely to face a long prison sentence.

>>>The federal judge presiding over sentencing for Oath Keepers members convicted of seditious conspiracy has ruled that militia leader Stewart Rhodes’ actions amounted to domestic terrorism [bold added].

The finding signals that Rhodes, 58, may face decades in prison when he is formally sentenced later Thursday.

This is an additional level of calculation, this is an additional level of planning, this in additional level of targeting an institution of American democracy at its most important moment – the transfer of power,” District Judge Amit Mehta said of Rhodes.

“He was the one giving the orders,” Mehta added. “He was the one organizing the teams that day. He was the reason they were in fact in Washington DC. Oath Keepers wouldn’t have been there but for Stewart Rhodes, I don’t think anyone contends otherwise. He was the one who gave the order to go, and they went.”

Rhodes was convicted of seditious conspiracy by a Washington, DC, jury in November in a historic criminal trial that was a test of the Justice Department’s ability to hold January 6 rioters accountable and validated prosecutors’ arguments that the breach of the Capitol was a grave threat to American democracy.

His sentence will be the first handed down in over a decade for seditious conspiracy, a charge that has rarely been brought in the century and a half that the statute and its forerunners have been on the books.

Prosecutors have asked Mehta to sentence Rhodes to 25 years behind bars, and to apply enhanced terrorism sentencing penalties. ... <<<

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/25/politics/oath-keepers-sentencing-stewart-rhodes-kelly-meggs/index.html

He got 18 years.

>>>Stewart Rhodes, the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers, was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Thursday for leading a far-reaching plot to keep then-President Donald Trump in power after he lost the 2020 election.

The sentence is the first handed down in over a decade for seditious conspiracy.

“What we absolutely cannot have is a group of citizens who – because they did not like the outcome of an election, who did not believe the law was followed as it should be – foment revolution,” District Judge Amit Mehta said before handing down the sentence. “That is what you did.”

“I dare say Mr. Rhodes – and I never have said this to anyone I have sentenced – you pose an ongoing threat and peril to our democracy and the fabric of this country,” Mehta said.

The judge added: “I dare say we all now hold our collective breaths when an election is approaching. Will we have another January 6 again? That remains to be seen.”

Mehta said Rhodes, 58, has expressed no remorse and continues to be a threat.

“A seditious conspiracy, when you take those two concepts and put it together, is among the most serious crimes an American can commit,” the judge said. “It is an offense against the government to use force. It is an offense against the people of our country.”

Mehta on Thursday previously ruled that Rhodes’ actions amounted to domestic terrorism. ...<<<

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/25/politics/oath-keepers-sentencing-stewart-rhodes-kelly-meggs/index.html

 

[Mr._Clark]

He got 18 years.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/25/politics/oath-keepers-sentencing-stewart-rhodes-kelly-meggs/index.html

Rhodes is really nuts. From the article:

>>>Rhodes, before he was sentenced, said he was a “political prisoner” and vowed to continue to “expose the criminality of the regime” in prison.

“I’d like to start by just saying that I’m a political prisoner, and like President Trump, my only crime is opposing those who are destroying our country,” Rhodes told Mehta in court.

For 20 minutes, Rhodes relitigated allegations that the 2020 presidential election was unconstitutional and shouted that he was “not able to drop that under my oath” during his military service and “not able to ignore the Constitution.”<<<

The notion that one can unilaterally declare something unconstitutional reminds me of the sovereign citizen movement.

>>>So-called sovereign citizens believe they are immune from government rules and in some cases - including recently in Australia and the US - have violently confronted police.<<<

What is the 'sovereign citizen' movement?

Anti-government activists who believe they are immune from the law are a worldwide threat, experts say.

www.bbc.com

 

[cpp]

Rhodes is really nuts. From the article:

>>>Rhodes, before he was sentenced, said he was a “political prisoner” and vowed to continue to “expose the criminality of the regime” in prison.

“I’d like to start by just saying that I’m a political prisoner, and like President Trump, my only crime is opposing those who are destroying our country,” Rhodes told Mehta in court.

For 20 minutes, Rhodes relitigated allegations that the 2020 presidential election was unconstitutional and shouted that he was “not able to drop that under my oath” during his military service and “not able to ignore the Constitution.”<<<

The notion that one can unilaterally declare something unconstitutional reminds me of the sovereign citizen movement.

>>>So-called sovereign citizens believe they are immune from government rules and in some cases - including recently in Australia and the US - have violently confronted police.<<<

What is the 'sovereign citizen' movement?

Anti-government activists who believe they are immune from the law are a worldwide threat, experts say.

www.bbc.com

Personally if I were a Fed Judge, I would have sent him to Guantanamo to serve out his 18 years with the other terrorist. .

 

[mtrycrafts]

He got 18 years.

...

Not long enough. He is a danger to all of us.

 

[Swerd]

Personally if I were a Fed Judge, I would have sent him to Guantanamo to serve out his 18 years with the other terrorist. .

As much as I like that idea, Guantanamo is out of the question. The US maximum security penitentiary in Florence, Colorado (ADX Florence), is more likely.

Rhodes can join other prisoners convicted of domestic & international terrorism, such as Terry Nichols, who along with Timothy McVeigh perpetrated the Oklahoma City Bombing; Richard Reid & Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, who separately attempted to detonate explosives on a commercial airplane flight; and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, convicted for the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Other notable inmates include Robert Hanssen, convicted of espionage for the Soviet Union and Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, the head of the Mexican Sinaloa Cartel and the world's most powerful drug lord, convicted in 2019. Rhodes should fit in nicely.

Rhodes's ex-wife has recently been making the rounds telling us all what a "complete sociopath" he is.
https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2023/05/26/oath-keepers-chief-ex-wife-tasha-adams-stewart-rhodes-sentence-sot-cpt-vpx.cnn

WNYC Studios’ Death, Sex & Money and On the Media present Two-Part Interview with Tasha Adams, Estranged Wife of Right-Wing Oath Keeper’s Leader Stewart Rhodes - New York Public Radio

Part one debuts today on Death, Sex & Money Episode includes interview with Kelly Jones, ex-wife of Alex Jones Part two to drop at the conclusion of Rhodes’ federal criminal trial in connection with the January 6th insurrection on On the Media on Friday, May 26 (New York, NY – Wednesday, May 3)...

nypublicradio.org

 

[Trell]

Personally if I were a Fed Judge, I would have sent him to Guantanamo to serve out his 18 years with the other terrorist. .

He might very well get a pardon from Trump or DeSantis.

>>>Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said Thursday that if elected president, he will consider pardoning all the Jan. 6 defendants — including former President Trump — on his first day in office.

“On day one, I will have folks that will get together and look at all these cases, who people are victims of weaponization or political targeting, and we will be aggressive in issuing pardons,” DeSantis said on “The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show” podcast when asked about whether he will consider pardoning Jan. 6 defendants, including Trump, who is currently facing a federal investigation over his role on Jan. 6.

“I would say any example of disfavored treatment based on politics, or weaponization would be included in that review, no matter how small or how big,” he added. ...<<<

DeSantis says he’ll consider pardoning Jan. 6 defendants, including Trump

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said Thursday that if elected president, he will consider pardoning all the Jan. 6 defendants — including former President Trump — on his first day in office. “On day …

thehill.com

 

[cpp]

He might very well get a pardon from Trump or DeSantis.

Now that would be a tragic mistake. But !, who knows these days.

 

[Trell]

Now that would be a tragic mistake. But !, who knows these days.

Voting has consequences.

 

[Mr._Clark]

An Oath Keepers attorney was recently deemed mentally incompetent to stand trial. This is of course not the same thing as a finding that she's innocent by reason of insanity (see 2nd link below: "So long as a defendant is deemed incompetent, the insanity defense becomes moot as the defendant cannot stand trial").

The news reports seem to suggest that this is probably temporary because she is likely to regain competency as a result of treatment, but it's hard to predict.

>>>The attorney for the right-wing anti-government Oath Keepers group currently facing conspiracy and obstruction charges in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has been deemed mentally incompetent to stand trial. . . .

SoRelle took over leadership of the Oath Keepers in January 2022 after Rhodes’ arrest. In January 2021, she was one of the lawyers behind a pro-Trump election fraud lawsuit that memorably drew from “The Lord of the Rings,” comparing Trump to the “true king” of the fictional kingdom of Gondor and Biden, his administration, and lawmakers as “a group of individuals calling themselves the President, Vice President and Congress who have no rightful claim to govern the American People.”

SoRelle was reportedly romantically involved with Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, who was convicted in November of seditious conspiracy and other felonies relating to Jan. 6 and sentenced in May to nearly two decades behind bars. Her relationship with Rhodes was revealed in sharp relief during Rhodes’ trial in October 2022 when some of the one-time couple’s explicit text messages that indicated a romantic entanglement between attorney and client were shown to jurors.<<<

Oath Keepers lawyer who made infamous 'Lord of the Rings' argument in pro-Trump lawsuit deemed 'mentally incompetent' for her Jan. 6 trial

A judge found that Kellye SoRelle "is presently suffering from a mental disease or defect rendering her mentally incompetent" and was ordered to a mental hospital until she is fit for trial.

lawandcrime.com

insanity defense

www.law.cornell.edu