Legal risks in sedition conspiracy case against Oath Keepers

By JACQUES BILLEAUD and MICHAEL KUNZELMAN
Associated Press

The seditious conspiracy case against members and associates of the far-right Oath Keepers militia group marks the boldest attempt so far by the government to prosecute those who attacked the U.S. Capitol. But invoking the rarely used charge carries considerable risks. Still, legal experts who have reviewed the indictment unsealed this past week against Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and 10 others say prosecutors stand a good chance of winning convictions on allegations that the defendants were working together to use force to stop the peaceful transfer of presidential power. The Civil War-era charge is hard to prove, and scholars say overzealousness in applying it, going back centuries, also discredited its use.