The founder and chief of the far-right militia group the Oath Keepers will seem earlier than the Home choose committee investigating the January 6 Capitol assault on Wednesday, his attorneys confirmed to CBS Information.
Stewart Rhodes is scheduled to adjust to a Congressional subpoena and nearly subject questions posed by the Committee's investigators through Zoom from an Oklahoma Jail.
Rhodes has been charged with seditious conspiracy and different crimes stemming from his alleged involvement within the Capitol breach and is at the moment being held with out bail. He's anticipated to refuse to reply lots of the questions and invoke his fifth modification proper towards self-incrimination and procedural considerations in order to not intrude along with his legal trial, his authorized crew explains.
Prosecutors allege Rhodes and 10 co-conspirators supposed to cease the presidential switch of energy by January 20, 2021, when President Biden was sworn into workplace.
"They coordinated journey throughout the nation to enter Washington, D.C., outfitted themselves with quite a lot of weapons, donned fight and tactical gear, and have been ready to reply Rhodes's name to take up arms at Rhodes's path," in response to the indictment. "Some co-conspirators additionally amassed firearms on the outskirts of Washington, D.C., distributed them amongst 'fast response power' groups, and deliberate to make use of the firearms in help of their plot to cease the lawful switch of presidential energy."
After weeks of planning, largely over messaging apps, prosecutors say the members of the Oath Keepers and its associates shaped two "stacks" to breach the Capitol constructing on the day of the assault.
In the meantime, the charging paperwork and subsequent filings allege a separate crew of Oath Keepers remained outdoors Washington and was "ready to quickly transport firearms and different weapons into Washington, D.C., in help of the operations." Such a transport was by no means ordered by Rhodes or another leaders, prosecutors mentioned.
"Rhodes stood on the middle of the seditious conspiracy," the federal government alleged in court docket paperwork, "orchestrating plans to make use of power, recruiting and financing co-conspirators, buying weaponry and tactical gear, inciting help and motion, and endeavoring to hide his and different co-conspirators' crimes."
Virginia-based lawyer Jon Moseley says he'll characterize the Oath Keeper earlier than the Committee throughout Wednesday's deposition.
Each Moseley and Rhodes' legal protection lawyer, Philip Linder, verify that their shopper will seemingly keep away from answering questions which will intrude along with his legal trial.
The Oath Keepers founder is at the moment detained in Oklahoma, seemingly on his technique to D.C. earlier than trial, his attorneys say.
Nevertheless, Linder and his co-counsel, James Lee Vivid, each of Texas, have requested a Washington, D.C. choose to both free their shopper from pretrial detention or switch him again to a Texas jail to assist facilitate his preparation for July's trial.
They're requesting that the choose rethink Texas Justice of the Peace Decide Kimberly Priest Johnson's ruling that Rhodes be detained forward of that trial.
"The proof exhibits Defendant orchestrated a large-scale assault on the federal authorities with the aim of intimidating, by violence, federal officers and disrupting official governmental proceedings incident to the switch of energy within the Government Department following a nationwide election," the Justice of the Peace choose wrote.
Rhodes and 9 of his co-defendants have pleaded not responsible to costs that they deliberate for and took part within the January 6 Capitol assault. In all, 11 Oath Keepers have been charged with seditious conspiracy.
The Home January 6 choose committee has issued dozens of subpoenas, together with to Trump's allies, former White Home officers, marketing campaign aides and people concerned within the planning of the rally outdoors the White Home earlier than the Capitol constructing got here underneath siege. Two prime Trump allies, Steve Bannon and former White Home chief of employees Mark Meadows, have been held in contempt of Congress for refusing to adjust to subpoenas, and the Justice Division has charged Bannon. Each mentioned they're following directions from Trump, who has claimed government privilege.
Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi created the Home choose committee final 12 months to analyze the January 6 assault, when hundreds of Trump supporters descended on the Capitol as Congress counted the electoral votes, a largely ceremonial ultimate step affirming President Biden's victory.
In keeping with lawmakers, the panel has interviewed 400 witnesses and has obtained over 50,000 paperwork.