Edward Kelley (Capitol rioter)

Last updated
Edward Kelley
Born1988or1989(age 36–37)
Known for
Criminal statusIncarcerated
Criminal penalty Life imprisonment
Military career
AllegianceUnited States
Branch United States Marine Corps

Edward Kelley is an American convicted felon known for his participation in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, as well as subsequently conspiring to murder dozens of law enforcement personnel involved in investigating his role in the Capitol riot.

Contents

On November 8, 2024, Kelley was convicted of eleven counts—three felonies and eight misdemeanors—in connection with the Capitol attack, including civil disorder, destruction of government property, and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers. On November 20 of the same year, Kelley was convicted of conspiracy to murder federal employees, solicitation to commit a crime of violence, and influencing a federal official by threat.

On January 20, 2025, the first day of the second presidency of Donald Trump, Kelley was pardoned along with nearly every other participant in the Capitol attack, though this did not apply to his conspiracy charges. On July 2, 2025, Kelley was sentenced to life in prison.

Biography

At the time of the Capitol attack, Kelley was a United States Marine Corps veteran from Maryville, Tennessee. [1] He had been deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan, [2] serving for eight years before his 2015 discharge. [3] Kelley was an anti-abortion activist. [4]

January 6 United States Capitol attack

On January 6, 2021, Kelley participated in the January 6 United States Capitol attack in Washington, D.C., an attempt to prevent the 2021 United States Electoral College vote count. During the riot, Kelley, wearing a gas mask, threw a United States Capitol Police (USCP) officer to the ground along with two other rioters. [5] He subsequently pushed and pulled on a metal barricade, eventually pushing past police alongside the crowd. Once outside the Senate Wing Door, Kelley used a piece of wood to smash and enter the window next to the door around 2:13 p.m. He was the fourth Capitol rioter to enter the building. [6] [7] Kelley then kicked open the Senate Wing Door while inside the building. As more rioters breached the Capitol, Kelley advanced within the building and confronted USCP officer Eugene Goodman, whom he chased up a flight of stairs. [8] Kelley remained in the building for approximately 40 minutes, exiting via the United States Capitol rotunda at 2:54 p.m. [1]

Kelley was arrested in Knoxville, Tennessee, on May 5, 2022; he was released a week later on a personal recognizance bond. [9] On November 8, 2024, following a two-day bench trial, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly acquitted Kelley of obstructing an official proceeding, though convicted him of eleven counts: [10] three feloniescivil disorder, destruction of government property, and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers—as well as eight misdemeanors. Kelley's sentencing was set for April 7, 2025, [1] though he was pardoned on January 20, 2025, the first day of the second presidency of Donald Trump. [11]

Subsequent charges

On December 16, 2022, Kelley and Austin Carter, a 26-year-old security officer from Knoxville, [4] [12] were both charged with conspiracy, retaliating against a federal official, interstate communication of a threat, and solicitation to commit a crime of violence. [13] [14] Kelley was held without bond until facing trial for these charges. [10]

While awaiting trial for his January 6 charges, Kelley had developed a plan to murder various law enforcement personnel involved in investigating him, including employees of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, and the Tennessee Highway Patrol. Kelley created a "kill list" of 37 law enforcement members and distributed it to a co-conspirator, who later pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy and testified that he and Kelley had planned attacks on the FBI's field office in Knoxville, Tennessee, using car bombs and incendiary devices attached to drones. The co-conspirator also testified that they had strategized assassinating FBI employees in their homes and in public places. In one recording, Kelley gave instructions to "take out their office" and "recruit as many as you can" in the event of his arrest, [15] [16] stating: "You don't have time to train or coordinate, but every hit has to hurt." [17] [18] [19]

On November 20, 2024, following a three-day trial, Kelley was convicted of conspiracy to murder federal employees, solicitation to commit a crime of violence, and influencing a federal official by threat; [20] [21] the jury required just one hour of deliberation. [22] Kelley's sentencing was set for May 7, 2025. [23] [24] Federal prosecutors sought a sentence of life in prison for Kelley, citing his lack of remorse. [25] [26] Although Kelley argued that Trump's blanket pardon of January 6 defendants also applied to his conspiracy charges, [27] both the United States Department of Justice and U.S. District Judge Thomas A. Varlan ruled against this. [28] [29] [30] [31] Varlan also denied Kelley's motion for a new trial due to insufficient evidence. [32]

On July 2, 2025, Varlan sentenced Kelley to life in prison. [33] His request to be released pending an appeal was denied. [34] [35] Kelley's co-conspirator, Austin Carter, also faced a life sentence, though he accepted a plea agreement with a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. [36] On August 4, 2025, Carter was sentenced to eight years in prison. [37]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Tennessee Man Convicted of Assaulting Law Enforcement and Other Charges for Actions During Jan 6. Capitol Breach". Washington, D.C.: United States Department of Justice. November 8, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  2. Feuer, Alan (July 3, 2025). "Pardoned Jan. 6 Rioter Sentenced to Life in Assassination Plot" . The New York Times . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  3. Kunzelman, Michael (July 2, 2025). "Military veteran gets a life sentence for plotting an FBI attack after his Jan. 6 arrest". Washington, D.C.: Associated Press . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  4. 1 2 Reilly, Ryan J. (November 10, 2023). "Tennessee man admits to conspiring with Jan. 6 defendant to kill FBI agents". Washington, D.C.: NBC News . Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  5. Murdock, Sebastian (July 5, 2025). "Man Pardoned For Jan. 6 Crimes Gets Life In Prison Over FBI 'Kill List'". HuffPost . Retrieved July 5, 2025.
  6. MacFarlane, Scott. "Tennessee man pardoned for Jan. 6 offenses gets life in prison in separate case accusing him of trying in incite "civil war"". CBS News . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  7. Reilly, Ryan J. (October 29, 2024). "Trump fan charged with plotting to murder FBI agents had a gun on Jan. 6, DOJ says". Washington, D.C.: NBC News . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  8. Lee, Ella (July 2, 2025). "Jan. 6 defendant convicted of plotting to kill agents who investigated his role in Capitol riot gets life sentence". The Hill . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  9. Richards, Zoë; Kosnar, Michael (December 16, 2022). "Capitol riot defendant planned to kill FBI agents who investigated him, unsealed filing alleges". NBC News . Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  10. 1 2 Jackman, Tom (February 8, 2025). "Jan. 6 defendant also wants pardon for 2022 plot to kill FBI agents" . The Washington Post . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  11. Riordan, Kaitlin (January 23, 2025) [January 22, 2025]. "7 East Tennesseans were charged in Jan. 6 insurrection. Now they've been pardoned". Knoxville, Tennessee: WBIR . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  12. Somasundaram, Praveena (November 20, 2024). "Jan. 6 rioter found guilty of plotting to kill FBI agents, DOJ says" . The Washington Post . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  13. "Two Tennessee Men Arrested for Planning Attacks on Law Enforcement Personnel and the FBI's Knoxville Field Office". United States Department of Justice. December 16, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  14. Oladipo, Gloria (December 17, 2022). "Tennessee man accused of plot to kill FBI agents in latest January 6 charges". The Guardian . Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  15. "Jan. 6 Capitol rioter conspired to kill federal agents, court records show". CBS News. December 16, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  16. Lybrand, Holmes (December 16, 2022). "January 6 defendant arrested for allegedly planning to kill FBI agents who had investigated him" . CNN . Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  17. "Tennessee Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Conspiring to Murder Law Enforcement and Attack FBI Office". United States Department of Justice. July 2, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  18. Feuer, Alan (December 16, 2022). "Jan 6. Defendant Charged With Plotting to Kill Agents Who Investigated Him" . The New York Times . Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  19. Karam, Alec (December 16, 2022). "Accused Jan. 6 Rioter Plotted to 'Take Out' Feds Investigating Him, Prosecutors Say" . The Daily Beast . Retrieved July 5, 2025.
  20. "Jan. 6 Capitol rioter from Tennessee convicted of creating "kill list" in plot to murder FBI agents who investigated him". CBS News. November 21, 2024. Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  21. Park, Hanna (November 21, 2024). "Jan. 6 defendant is convicted of conspiring to kill FBI agents investigating Capitol attack" . CNN . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  22. Reilly, Ryan J. (November 21, 2024) [November 20, 2024]. "Jan. 6 rioter is convicted of plotting to murder FBI agents who investigated him". Washington, D.C.: NBC News . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  23. "Federal Jury Convicts Man of Conspiring to Murder FBI Employees". United States Department of Justice. November 20, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  24. Pengelly, Martin (November 21, 2024). "Tennessee man involved in Capitol riot guilty of plot to kill federal agents". The Guardian . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  25. Reilly, Ryan J. (July 2, 2025). "Jan. 6 defendant sentenced to life in prison for plotting to kill FBI special agents who investigated him". Washington, D.C.: NBC News . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  26. Fiallo, Josh (June 18, 2025). "DOJ Seeks Lifetime Behind Bars for Jan. 6 Convict Pardoned By Trump". The Daily Beast . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  27. Rubin, Jordan (February 4, 2025). "Jan. 6 defendant says Trump's blanket pardon covers conspiracy to kill FBI agents". MSNBC . Retrieved August 9, 2025.
  28. Reilly, Ryan J. (February 18, 2025). "Trump's Jan. 6 pardons don't cover Capitol rioter who plotted to kill FBI agents, DOJ says". Washington, D.C.: NBC News . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  29. Reilly, Ryan J. (March 10, 2025). "Trump's Jan. 6 pardon doesn't cover rioter's plot to kill FBI agents, judge rules". Washington, D.C.: NBC News . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  30. Cheney, Kyle (March 10, 2025). "Judge says Trump Jan. 6 pardon doesn't apply to man who conspired to kill investigators". Politico . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  31. Leingang, Rachel (March 10, 2025). "Trump's January 6 pardon doesn't cover FBI murder plot conviction, judge rules". The Guardian . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  32. Mealins, Evan (March 11, 2025) [March 10, 2025]. "Trump's Jan. 6 pardon does not cover East TN man's plot to murder FBI agents, judge rules". The Tennessean . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  33. Patterson, Kenneal (July 2, 2025). "Jan. 6er Gets Life in Prison Despite Trump's Efforts to Free Rioters" . The Daily Beast . Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  34. Liddell, James (July 3, 2025). "Jan 6 defendant sentenced to life in prison for plotting to kill FBI special agents who investigated him". The Independent . Retrieved July 3, 2025.
  35. Rubin, Jordan (July 3, 2025). "Jan. 6 defendant gets life sentence for murder plot, despite Trump pardon claim". MSNBC . Retrieved August 8, 2025.
  36. Kellar, Liz (November 13, 2023). "Knoxville man pleads guilty in conspiracy to kill FBI agents, faces 10 years in prison". Knoxville News Sentinel . Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  37. "Knoxville conspirator who helped feds secure conviction against murder plot ringleader gets 8-year prison sentence". Knoxville, Tennessee: WBIR. August 4, 2025. Retrieved August 4, 2025.

Further reading