The US Department of Justice (DOJ) Thursday announced new charges and convictions for those involved with the January 6, 2021, attack on the United States Capitol. The DOJ charged an attorney for the Oath Keepers militia group with conspiracy and obstruction. On the same day, one man was sentenced to ten years in prison and a second pled guilty to felony charges.
Kellye Sorelle, a Texas attorney, is charged with conspiracy to obstruct Congress’s certification of the Electoral College votes, and obstruction of Congress’s certification of the Electoral College vote. The indictment further alleges that Sorelle entered the Capitol on or about January 6, 2021, and that Sorelle persuaded others to withhold records, documents, or objects from the Grand Jury investigation of the January 6 attack. Unlike other Oath Keepers members, and others who were charged for the attack on the Capitol building, Sorelle is not charged with Seditious Conspiracy.
According to the Texas Bar, Sorelle is ineligible to practice law in Texas. Her website states that she is a former Assistant District Attorney. Through her website, Sorelle left the message “Please let me know if you are having issues with the events from 1/6/2021 or if your are being required to take the vaccine and who the organization is that is requiring it. If you are an attorney, please let me know what state you are licensed in and your bar number.”
Thomas Webster, a USMC veteran and retired NYPD officer, was sentenced for assaulting a police officer with a metal flagpole, and using that metal flagpole to resist arrest. Webster was charged with seven counts stemming for his actions at the capitol, and, after being found guilty on all counts, was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Julian Khater, a rioter from of Somerset, New Jersey, plead guilty to assaulting officers with a deadly weapon. Khater used pepper spray on an officer who was attempting to secure a barricade from rioters and continued to use pepper spray on two more officers before entering the Capitol. Khater faces up to 20 years in prison and a potential fine of $250,000. He is scheduled for sentencing on December 13, 2022.
Webster and Khater are a small fraction of the over 260 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement on January 6, and the DOJ stated that their investigation remains ongoing. In the past 19 months, more than 860 individuals have been arrested for alleged crimes related to the attack.
