Overview

Note: This entry represents an organization listed in the individuals data. The Oath Keepers are a far-right anti-government militia founded in 2009 by Elmer Stewart Rhodes III; a Yale Law School graduate and former Army paratrooper. The organization recruited primarily from current and former military; law enforcement; and first responders; exploiting their oaths of service to defend the Constitution. At its peak; the Oath Keepers claimed approximately 38;000 members. The organization played a central role in the January 6; 2021 Capitol attack; with members forming a military-style "stack" formation to breach the building. Rhodes and other leaders were convicted of seditious conspiracy; the most serious charges brought against any January 6 defendants. Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison; the longest January 6 sentence. The organization had previously appeared armed at the Bundy Ranch standoff (2014); Ferguson protests (2014); Sugar Pine Mine standoff (2015); and various state capitols. Internal communications revealed that Rhodes directed members to stockpile weapons at a Virginia hotel as a Quick Reaction Force for January 6; prepared to bring firearms across the Potomac River into Washington D.C. if ordered. The conviction of Oath Keepers leadership for seditious conspiracy represented the first successful federal sedition prosecution in over 25 years.

Key Affiliations

Controversies & Concerns

Related Investigations (1)

Known Associates & Connections

Sources & Documentation

2 documented sources from official records, investigations, and reports