Oath Keepers Lawyer Not Competent To Stand Trial

Washington DC’s CBS affiliate reports:

Evaluators hired by the government and defense have determined the former general counsel for the Oath Keepers militia is not currently competent to stand trial, both her lawyer and a federal prosecutor said in court Thursday.

Kellye SoRelle, of Texas, was indicted in September on felony counts of conspiracy and obstruction for allegedly instructing members of the Oath Keepers to destroy evidence after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol Building.

SoRelle, a lawyer and former Republican candidate for the Texas House of Representatives, was on the grounds of the Capitol with militia leader Stewart Rhodes but did not enter the building.

The Washington Post reports:

U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta of D.C. postponed SoRelle’s trial indefinitely, finding — based on reports by defense and government medical experts — that she was suffering from a mental disease or defect rendering her unable to understand the proceedings against her or to assist properly in her defense.

Mehta ordered the defendant to begin treatment near Junction, Tex., where she lives, while both sides searched for an inpatient hospital facility where she could be held for months to determine whether competence could be restored. The reports and the nature of SoRelle’s condition were not made public.

Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes said he had designated her as his liaison to the pro-Trump, GOP and “Stop the Steal” campaigns, and she became a point of contact with Proud Boys leader Henry “Enrique” Tarrio.

SoRelle is Rhodes’ girlfriend. She first appeared on JMG in January 2022 when she declared herself to be the new leader of the Oath Keepers after the Rhodes’ arrest.

A volunteer for Lawyers for Trump, Kellye SoRelle became Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes’s girlfriend and a key post-2020 election contact with “Stop the Steal” groups. https://t.co/F0JoV0ybGD

— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) June 16, 2023