- A Jan. 6 Capitol rioter and his lawyers believe that his subsequent conviction in a separate federal case should be overturned due to President Donald Trump’s pardons. However, the Justice Department contended that Edward Kelley’s actions in 2022 were completely separate from those of Jan. 6, 2021.
- The DOJ encouraged the judge to continue with sentencing for Kelley’s plot to murder federal, state and local law enforcement officials in Tennessee.
- Kelley’s sentencing will take place in May.
Full Story
A Jan. 6 Capitol rioter, among the 1,500 recently pardoned by President Donald Trump, should still face sentencing and punishment for separate convictions, the Department of Justice said. In late 2024, a federal jury in Tennessee convicted Edward Kelley on charges of conspiracy to murder federal agents, solicitation to commit a violent crime, and influencing or retaliating against federal officials through threats.
What charges was Kelley convicted of?
FBI agents investigated Kelley’s actions during the Capitol riots in 2021. Prosecutors believed that once Kelley returned to Tennessee in 2022, he devised a plan to murder federal, state and local law enforcement officers.
The Justice Department said Kelley developed a kill list of FBI agents and others who investigated his involvement in the Capitol riots.
A court initially convicted him for his involvement on Jan. 6 for assaulting law enforcement and possessing a handgun as he breached the Capitol. He then opened a fire escape door allowing the mob to get inside.
Why do Kelley’s lawyers believe he should be fully pardoned?
Kelley’s lawyer argued that Trump’s pardon of rioters should also apply to Kelley’s murder plot because it directly relates to the events at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
What is the DOJ’s opinion?
Federal prosecutors disagreed, stating that the murder plot was not related to Jan. 6 but rather to Kelley’s criminal conduct in Tennessee in late 2022, over 500 miles from the Capitol.
When is Kelley’s sentencing?
Kelley’s sentencing will take place in May.
