Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes barred from DC

WASHINGTON - A federal judge on Friday barred Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes from entering the District without the court's approval after President Donald Trump commuted the leader's 18-year prison sentence for January 6. 

Timeline:

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta issued the order two days after Rhodes visited Capitol Hill, where he met with at least one lawmaker, chatted with others and defended his actions the day of the riot.

Mehta’s order applies to seven other defendants who were charged in one of the most serious conspiracy cases brought by the Justice Department over the riot. The order also prohibits them from entering the Capitol building or surrounding grounds without the court’s permission.

Big picture view:

While Trump pardoned most of the defendants, he only commuted the prison sentences of Rhodes and 13 others. That means they remain on supervised release and have to follow certain restrictions set by the court under the supervision of a probation officer.

Ed Martin, who has been serving as U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia since Trump’s inauguration on Monday, argued that Trump’s commutations mean Rhodes and others are no longer subject to the court’s supervision. In a court filing that bears only his name and signature, Martin urged the judge to vacate Friday’s order.

Martin has served as a board member of the Patriot Freedom Project group, which portrays the Jan. 6 defendants as victims of political persecution. He’s now overseeing the office that prosecuted the hundreds of riot defendants.

What they're saying:

"The individuals referenced in our motion have had their sentences commuted — period, end of sentence," Martin said in a statement Friday.

Rhodes said during his visit to the Capitol this week that he’s now urging Trump to give him a full pardon. Rhodes stopped in at a Dunkin’ Donuts inside the House office building in the Capitol complex before delivering a lengthy defense of himself and his actions.

"I didn’t lead anything," he said. "So why should I feel responsible for that?"

Rhodes did not enter the Capitol on Jan. 6, but was accused of orchestrating a weekslong plot to forcibly stop the transfer of power.