Key takeaways:
- Elmer Stewart Rhodes, the founder of the far-right Oath Keepers, was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
- U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta said Rhodes presents an “ongoing threat and a peril to this country and to the republic and to the very fabric of this democracy.”
- Rhodes’ sentence is the longest yet handed down to any of the more than 400 people charged in connection with the attack on the Capitol.
Elmer Stewart Rhodes, the founder of the far-right Oath Keepers, was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison on Thursday for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Rhodes was convicted of seditious conspiracy in federal court in June 2021. Prior to his sentencing, Rhodes delivered a 20-minute-long diatribe in which he called himself a “political prisoner” and said his only crime was trying to stop politicians from “destroying” America.
U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta delivered a searing and lengthy reproach to Rhodes shortly before handing down his sentence. Judge Mehta said, “You, sir, present an ongoing threat and a peril to this country and to the republic and to the very fabric of this democracy.”
In his speech before his sentencing, Rhodes said that when he talked about “regime change” in a phone call with supporters earlier this week, he meant he hopes that former President Donald Trump will win in 2024.
Rhodes’ sentence is the longest yet handed down to any of the more than 400 people charged in connection with the attack on the Capitol. The attack left five people dead and dozens of law enforcement officers injured.
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