In two landmark trials in 2023, federal juries convicted leaders of the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys of seditious conspiracy — a Civil War-era charge that hadn’t resulted in a successful conviction in decades. The trials documented in granular detail how organized paramilitary groups planned, coordinated, and executed an attack on the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The Oath Keepers
Stewart Rhodes, the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers, was convicted of seditious conspiracy on November 29, 2022. He was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison on May 25, 2023. The prosecution showed that Rhodes had spent weeks planning for January 6, stockpiling weapons at a Virginia hotel as a “Quick Reaction Force,” organizing tactical teams, and directing Oath Keepers to breach the Capitol in a military-style “stack” formation.
Rhodes didn’t personally enter the building. He directed operations from outside. The jury found that was enough. He conspired to use force to oppose the lawful transfer of presidential power. That’s sedition.
The Proud Boys
Enrique Tarrio, the national chairman of the Proud Boys, was convicted of seditious conspiracy on May 4, 2023. He was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison on September 5, 2023 — the longest sentence of any January 6 defendant. Four other Proud Boys leaders were also convicted: Joe Biggs (17 years), Zachary Rehl (15 years), Ethan Nordean (18 years), and Dominic Pezzola (10 years).
Tarrio, like Rhodes, wasn’t at the Capitol on January 6 — he had been arrested two days earlier on unrelated charges and was ordered to leave D.C. But the evidence showed he was the architect: planning the attack, coordinating with members, directing their movements, and celebrating as the Capitol was breached. “Make no mistake,” he texted as rioters stormed the building. “We did this.”
The Pardons
On January 20, 2025 — his first day back in office — Trump pardoned or commuted the sentences of virtually every January 6 defendant, including those convicted of seditious conspiracy. Rhodes and Tarrio were freed. The men convicted of conspiring to overthrow the government walked out of prison because the man who directed the mob to the Capitol signed a piece of paper.
The foot soldiers got years. The organizers got decades. The man at the top — who held the rally, told them to “fight like hell,” directed them to march to the Capitol, and watched the attack on TV for 187 minutes without acting — got the presidency. Then he freed everyone else. The accountability pyramid was inverted: the further up the chain of command, the less the consequences.
Bottom Line
Two juries, after hearing weeks of evidence, concluded that the leaders of the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys conspired to oppose the lawful transfer of power through force. The sentences reflected the gravity: 10 to 22 years. Then the man who created the conditions for the attack, who directed the crowd, who refused to stop it, who celebrated it — won the next election and erased every sentence. The convictions happened. The accountability didn’t survive the next election cycle.
Sources
- DOJ: Enrique Tarrio 22-year sentence, seditious conspiracy, September 5, 2023.
- DOJ: Stewart Rhodes 18-year sentence, May 25, 2023.
- Associated Press: Proud Boys seditious conspiracy verdict, May 4, 2023.
- New York Times: Oath Keepers trial and sentencing coverage.