An attorney who represented the far-right organization Oath Keepers pled guilty this week in charges relating to the January 6, 2021, Capitol riots.
On Wednesday, the Associated Press (AP) reported that attorney Kellye SoRelle pleaded guilty to charges relating to the Capitol riot following a hearing in a Washington, D.C. court. SoRelle is set to be sentenced on January 17, 2025, by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta in Washington, D.C.
During the hearing on Wednesday, 45-year-old SoRelle, of Granbury, Texas, pleaded guilty to one felony count of obstructing justice and one misdemeanor count of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds.
The felony charge has a maximum prison sentence of up to 20 years but recommended sentencing guidelines for SoRelle suggest a maximum 16-month prison sentence, the AP reported.
AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein
In 2022, SoRelle was arrested in Junction, Texas, but ongoing questions about her mental health have resulted in the case being suspended for the past several months.
More than a year ago, medical experts determined SoRelle was mentally unfit to stand trial. In November 2023, she was sent to a federal Bureau of Prisons facility for treatment. Last month, Judge Mehta ruled that SoRelle had recovered enough to understand the charges against her and assist in her defense.
During the January 6 riots, SoRelle was seen in photographs alongside Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes. During the riots, SoRelle allegedly posted a message in the Oath Keepers Telegram chat saying “We are acting like the founding fathers—can’t stand down. Per Stewart, and I concur.”
Rhodes was previously sentenced to 18 years in prison for a scheme to keep former President Donald Trump in office following the 2020 election. Following Rhodes’ arrest, SoRelle reportedly told media outlets that she was acting in his place as the president of the far-right organization.
“Although SoRelle did not personally enter the Capitol Building on January 6, she understood the role those inside and outside the building, like herself, played in delaying the certification proceeding that had been taking place inside the Capitol,” a court filing accompanying her guilty plea said on Wednesday.
In 2009, the Oath Keepers organization was founded by Rhodes, a former U.S. Army paratrooper. The far-right group has been known to recruit former police officers and military members with a pledge that seeks to “fulfill the oath all military and police take to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”
SoRelle pleaded guilty to obstructing justice by urging others to destroy electronic evidence of their involvement in the plot. Two days after the riot, both she and Rhodes used her cellphone to send messages encouraging Oath Keepers to delete incriminating evidence.