WASHINGTON—The first week of the Oath Keepers trial ended on Oct. 7 at E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse with brief testimonies from two FBI special agents.
Both agents said the bureau assigned them to investigate the Oath Keepers’ members before and after the 2020 presidential election. They analyzed social media posts, text messages, and other communications of defendants Stewart Rhodes, Thomas Caldwell, Kelly Meggs, Jessica Watkins, and others.
Special Agent Ryan McCamley testified that he heard Rhodes’ speech at the Jericho March wearing plain clothes. According to him, since Nov. 2020, the agency has become aware of the risks of violence between Donald Trump supporters and other protesters.
The two agents confirmed to the prosecutors that Rhodes texted and spoke about refusing to accept a possibly stolen presidential election and how he and his team planned to overturn the election if former president Donald Trump wouldn’t invoke the Insurrection Act.
“Time to get serious about training. And force on force is the way to go,” texted Rhodes in a message on Dec. 25, 2020, to the “OLD Leadership CHAT” group on Signal.
“But he [Trump] needs to know that if he doesn’t do it, we will. And if we have to do it ourselves, without him as commander in chief, it will be exponentially harder, and many more of us will die. And while we fight, our nation will be vulnerable to invasion,” wrote Rhodes on the same group chat on Dec. 29, 2020. “It will be horrific.”
Throughout the first week of the trial, the government lawyers displayed screenshots of text messages from the Signal app, Facebook messages, recorded calls, and video footage of Rhodes and his organization allegedly conspiring against the transition of power to President-elect Joe Biden.
The prosecutors also asked several witnesses to write on a large physical calendar chart in the courtroom the dates of various Trump rallies, including the protests on Dec. 12, 2020, Jan. 6, 2021, and other events, in an attempt to make it easier for the jurors to understand the chronological order of the events.
However, the defense lawyers said the Oath Keepers were concerned about a potential attack by the Antifa extremist group on January 6. Oath Keepers act as an extension of law enforcement, they said, trying to de-escalate conflicts. Although the Oath Keepers had ammunition in Virginia, they didn’t use it and didn’t act even after it was clear Trump would not invoke the Insurrection Act.
The U.S. government charged Rhodes, Caldwell, Meggs, and others with multiple crimes such as seditious conspiracy, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, aiding and abetting, conspiracy to prevent an officer from discharging any duties, destruction of the government’s property, civil disorder, and tampering with documents.
The second week will begin on Oct. 11.
