Will Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes cooperate to avoid long prison sentence?

Oath Keepers founder and North Texas resident Stewart Rhodes has big decisions to make now that he’s been convicted of sedition and a potentially lengthy prison sentence could mean he dies in prison because of his age. Rhodes, 57, of Granbury, faces up to 20 years in federal prison for leading a violent plot with members of his extremist militia to overturn Joe Biden’s presidential win over Donald Trump. A Washington, D.C., jury convicted Rhodes and a top deputy on Tuesday of the rarely used Civil War-era charge of seditious conspiracy and other charges after a nearly two-month trial. The five-defendant trial, the biggest to date in the government’s massive investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection, focused on the far-right extremist group’s efforts to keep Trump in the White House, even by using deadly force.

Rhodes testified in his own defense during the trial. If the judge decides Rhodes lied on the witness stand, he faces punishment enhancements that could add up to a long prison sentence, unless he’s willing to help prosecutors with other cases. His conviction also has important implications for some of his top associates, including two other North Texas residents awaiting trial on related charges in Washington, D.C. “He can either be a hero in prison or he can try to get out to see some grandbabies,” said Aaron Wiley, a former federal prosecutor in Dallas. “This might mean the rest of his life” in prison. Rhodes’ two Dallas defense attorneys could not be reached for comment. The judge hasn’t set a date for sentencing. Those under Rhodes who face trials of their own are likely sweating it as they meet with their lawyers to discuss their next move, Wiley said. They include Kellye SoRelle, who assumed leadership of the Oath Keepers after Rhodes was arrested. She faces charges related to obstructing an official proceeding and obstruction of justice by tampering with documents. SoRelle, a 43-year-old family and immigration lawyer from Granbury, is closely linked to Rhodes. He told court officials he was in a relationship with her, though she denies it, and had lived with her in an apartment she leased.