The founder of the Oath Keepers, Stewart Rhodes, a far-right militia group, has been found guilty of sedition and other charges for his involvement in the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
A federal jury in Washington, DC concluded that Stewart Rhodes planned to forcefully block Congress from declaring and certifying that President Joe Biden had won the 2020 presidential election against Donald Trump.
During the trial, which lasted eight weeks, jurors heard how Rhodes, a former paratrooper, had rallied his followers to go to the Capitol and defend former President Trump. Prosecutors presented the court with evidence in the form of encrypted messages, surveillance videos, and recordings of Rhodes speaking about the potential of a civil war that might turn bloody. He had also encouraged members to rise against President Biden if Trump refused to act.
Just before the riot broke out at the Capitol, Rhodes spent thousands of dollars on a rifle, magazines, sights, and other equipment. The jury saw footage of members of the Oath Keepers group stashing weapons at a hotel in Virginia in case they needed to use them in Washington, DC. Rhodes also regretted not bringing the guns into Washington, DC, on January 6. The court heard him say that he wanted to hang Speaker Nancy Pelosi from a lamp post.
According to a prosecutor, Oath Keepers in combat gear were spotted in the crowd that stormed the Capitol, and Rhodes stood outside almost like a general on a battlefield surveying his troops.
He later joined fellow Oath Keepers to celebrate at a nearby restaurant.
Rhodes was not the only Oath Keepers member on trial. Kelly Meggs, leader of the Oath Keepers’ Florida Chapter, and three more members also stood trial.
Jury deliberations took three days before convicting both Rhodes and Meggs of sedition, a charge that has not been used in decades. The last time the courts convicted anyone of sedition was in 1995, when Islamic militants who had planned bombings in New York City were found guilty.
In addition to the seditious conspiracy charge, Rhodes was also found guilty of tampering with evidence and obstructing an official proceeding. He is facing up to 20 years in prison.
The three other members, Thomas Caldwell, Jessica Watkins, and Kenneth Harrelson, were acquitted of the central charge of seditious conspiracy but were all convicted for obstructing an official proceeding and found guilty of a mix of other charges.
The prosecution and conviction of the five Oath Keepers members is seen as the most consequential insurrection case to go on trial. Prosecutors accused the members of plotting against the peaceful transfer of power to President Biden by any means necessary, including violence.
Rhodes and his followers were the first to go on trial for the January 6 incident and be accused of sedition. However, two more seditious conspiracy trials are set to begin in a few weeks. One involves more members of the Oath Keepers, while the other trial will include members of the Proud Boys group.
A January 6 House Select Committee member, Representative Jamie Raskin, said that the guilty verdicts showed that the US justice system is working.
Defense lawyers said although they were disappointed with the verdict, they believed the Oath Keepers members had received a fair trial.
