A lawyer linked to the Oath Keepers, who played a role in organizing the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol attack, pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and entering a restricted area. Kellye SoRelle, 45, was indicted in 2022 on charges related to her involvement in planning the attack, which included working with far-right groups to block Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory. According to court records, she acted as an intermediary between Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes and Proud Boys leader Henry “Enrique” Tarrio before the attack.
Unlike Rhodes and Tarrio, SoRelle was not charged with seditious conspiracy, which means she may face a lighter sentence. She admitted guilt to obstructing justice by tampering with documents and entering restricted Capitol grounds. In return, other charges, like conspiring to obstruct an official proceeding, were dropped. This decision was influenced by a recent Supreme Court ruling that limited the scope of such charges for individuals who attempted to disrupt the 2020 election certification.
During her plea hearing, SoRelle hesitated when asked if she sent encrypted messages encouraging rioters to delete communications about their involvement on January 6. These messages formed the basis for her felony conviction. After a tense exchange, she admitted to sending at least one of the messages, though she suggested that Rhodes might have sent some using her phone.
SoRelle’s trial had been delayed after a judge ruled she was initially unfit to stand trial due to mental illness. Her condition later improved, allowing her to proceed with the plea. SoRelle, who ran unsuccessfully for a Texas legislative seat in 2020 and volunteered for Lawyers for Trump, was arrested in September 2022. Shortly after her arrest, former President Donald Trump vowed to pardon Capitol riot defendants if re-elected, a promise that drew attention to SoRelle’s case.
Though SoRelle was not directly involved in violence during the riot, she did admit to writing letters to Trump before January 6, indicating her willingness to “take up arms” to defend liberty, echoing rhetoric common among far-right groups. In a 2021 interview, she downplayed the attack, claiming it was largely peaceful and that protesters were let into the Capitol by police—a defense that has failed in court for many others charged in the riot.
Court evidence shows that Rhodes instructed followers to destroy evidence, a directive carried out by SoRelle, who advised them to erase data from their phones. SoRelle’s public defender indicated that she is indigent.
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Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison, one of the longest sentences given to a January 6 defendant. SoRelle’s sentencing is scheduled for January 17, where she could face up to 21 years in prison, though the actual sentence is expected to range from six to 16 months based on federal guidelines.
