By Steve Neavling
The Justice Department is appealing the prison sentences of seven members of the Oath Keepers, including founder Stewart Rhodes, for their roles in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, Politico reports.
The members of the far-right group were sentenced in May after being convicted of seditious conspiracy and other conspiracy charges.
Rhodes received an 18-year prison sentence, the harshest punishment for any Jan. 6 defendant. Still, his sentence was seven years shorter than prosecutors recommended and four years below a “guidelines range” based on his conduct.
The sentences were handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Amit Mehta, an appointee of President Obama.
Many of other Oath Keepers members received sentences below the recommended guidelines.
Proseutors alleged the far-right members, in the months leading up to the attack, plotted to oppose by force the lawful transfer of presidential power, including by amassing an armed “quick reaction force” on the outskirts of D.C.
According to court evidence, the defendants and their co-conspirators, through encrypted and private communications platforms, began planning in late December 2020 to disrupt the confirmation of the presidential election.
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals will likely hear the Justice Department’s case.
