“This is his opportunity to really promote himself and his philosophy and make himself out to be a bit of a martyr.”
#WAKE ME UP AT 6 TRIAL#
“I think it’s going to be a little bit of a show trial for him,” said Weinstein, now a criminal defense lawyer in New Jersey. Michael Weinstein, a former Justice Department prosecutor, agreed that Rhodes’ argument is not likely to win over a jury.
“The government of the United States is more than just the president,” Vladeck said. Even if the president could authorize their actions, the Oath Keepers could still have been - as the law puts it - forcibly opposing other elements of the government, he said. Bush to call out the military to respond to Los Angeles riots after the acquittal of white police officers accused in the beating of Black motorist Rodney King.Įven if Trump had acted, prosecutors would still have a strong case that the Oath Keepers tried to keep Congress from carrying out its responsibilities as part of the transfer of presidential power, Vladeck said. The last time the Insurrection Act was used was in May of 1992, by President George H.W. The Act does give the president wide discretion to decide when military force is necessary, and what qualifies as military force, Vladeck said.
#WAKE ME UP AT 6 SERIES#
The Insurrection Act is shorthand for a series of statues that Congress passed between 18 defining when military force can be used in the United States by the federal government, said University of Texas law professor Stephen Vladeck. Rhodes never went into the Capitol and has said that the Oath Keepers who did acted on their own. Yet, Rhodes and the others left the Capitol grounds and went to Olive Garden for dinner,” they’ve written in court papers. If Rhodes really wanted to lead a revolution, his lawyers say there was no better opportunity to deploy the quick reaction force than when hundreds of people were storming the Capitol. The Oath Keepers amassed weapons and stationed armed “quick reaction force” teams at a Virginia hotel in case they were needed, prosecutors say.Īmong those likely to testify against Rhodes are three of his former followers, including one who has said Rhodes instructed them to be ready to use lethal force if necessary to keep Trump in the White House.ĭefense lawyers say the quick reaction force teams were defensive forces only to be used if Trump invoked the Insurrection Act. “If you think you are plotting to help protect the government, there is an argument that that means you don’t have the required guilty mindset that’s necessary in order to be guilty of seditious conspiracy,” he said.Ĭourt records show the Oath Keepers repeatedly warning of the prospect of violence if Biden were to become president. The defense would have to convince the jury that the Oath Keepers really intended to defend the government, not use force against it, said David Alan Sklansky, a former federal prosecutor who’s now a professor at Stanford Law School. 6 defendants to be tried on seditious conspiracy, a rarely used Civil War-era charge that can be difficult to prove. Rhodes and his associates - Kelly Meggs, Thomas Caldwell, Jessica Watkins and Kenneth Harrelson - are the first Jan. If Rhodes testifies, he could face intense questioning from prosecutors, who say his own words show the Oath Keepers would act no matter what Trump did.īright said Rhodes, a Yale Law School graduate, understands the risks of testifying but has insisted since the first day they met that he be able to “speak his piece.”
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