A two-time Olympic gold medalist who stormed the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 attack is set to be sentenced on Friday afternoon.
Klete Keller was arrested in January 2021, and pleaded guilty in September 2021 to a felony charge of obstruction of an official proceeding. His sentencing was deferred because of his cooperation.
More than two years after his guilty plea, prosecutors have asked for a sentence of 10 months in federal prison, saying that while Keller’s actions were “unconscionable,” that he provided extensive cooperation with the government and deserves a sentence below the guidelines range.
“Klete Derik Keller once wore the American flag as an Olympian,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memo. “On January 6, 2021, he threw that flag in a trash can.”
But, they wrote, for “nearly three years, Keller has cooperated with the government’s investigation into the attack on the Capitol—repeatedly meeting with the government to describe everyone around him and everything that happened leading up to and on Jan. 6. He has provided substantial assistance and has expressed remorse for his crimes.”
Keller chanted “F–k Nancy Pelosi!” and “F–k Chuck Schumer!” while inside the building, and “repeatedly resisted officers’ attempts to remove him from the building, at one point jerking his elbow away,” according to prosecutors. Afterwards, he threw his U.S.A. jacket away and destroyed his cell phone.
What Keller did, prosecutors wrote, “will forever be a stain on this country’s narrative, and it continues to impact our ability to credibly lead by example as a democratic republic.” As a former Olympian, they added, Keller “was in a unique position to know better.”
U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon will sentence Keller at a hearing in Washington that is set to begin at 4 p.m. on Friday.
Keller is 6’6” and over 250 pounds, and had an “imposing physical presence” when he joined the mob, prosecutors said. He ripped his elbow away as officers tried to clear the mob from the Capitol rotunda, prosecutors said.
“Take it easy!” he yelled. “Why do we have to leave?”
In a letter to the court, Keller apologized for his actions, saying he made “bad choices on that terrible day” and was going through a lot in his personal life. He said he knew he should not have entered the Capitol, but thought of it as an act of civil disobedience.
“I shouted out obnoxious, hostile slogans at law enforcement officers who were doing their job to protect Congress,” Keller wrote. “When I got back to the hotel, I felt sick after seeing myself in the news footage. I saw the same clip on the flight back to Colorado. It pained me to see such terrible chaos, damage, and harm.”
“I apologize to the Capitol police officers, legislators, staffers, and other government personnel who were in the Capitol doing their jobs,” he wrote. “I apologize to the voters and citizens of our great country, and I regret that my actions disrupted and tarnished the democratic process. I am sorry about all the harm, damage, and pointless violence done on that awful day. To everyone I disappointed when I broke the law, I apologize.”
More than 1,200 people have been charged in connection with the Capitol riot, and more than 400 have been sentenced to various periods of incarceration.
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All the people who attacked our capital and tried to over throw the government needs to serve prison time including trump.
The only ones that started any trouble was the FBI, that the democrat party was behind. My God, how uninformed weak minded people are. But that’s what the democrat party preys on.
NO, The FBI was not behind any of that.
That is a false narrative for which there are NO evidences at all.
I know you right winger MAGA types LOVE to make things up, but THERE is nothing in this world that would clean the treasonous acts committed by the stupid morons prodded by the biggest liar in the world.
Treason is bad enough…but treason because you are a gullible idiot….well, that buys the boat…It should be written in your tombstone “Here lies a dumb idiot”
Yes, even the FBI has been forced to admit they had 200+ agents prodding the peaceful protestors on… and will admit even more once Trump is president again and can protect them…
Keller had nothing to apologize for and the police, prosecutors, and judges should all get LIFE IN PRISON !!!
First off the poster Dee is delusional as there is more and more proof that this was a setup by Democrat hierarchy, coordinating with the nation’s law enforcement agencies. Second, on the reelection of President Trump to the White House it is hoped that he will pardon each and every imprisoned ‘conspirator’, and once that is done will finish cleaning the D.C. Swamp. All of this is only to prevent his return, and that is what far-left whacks/commies in the Dem’ Party are most afraid of, a loss of their control and power.
And here is another one..
Trump is not getting re-elected. Those people will not be pardoned.
Now in my opinion, if we are going to prosecute all the idiots that believed in Trump that day, we will have full jails full of morons with medical problems and obesity (I’ve seen the rallies)
I think that as long as they did not commit any physical attacks or property damage and show real repentance of their stupidity, they should be parole
You are truly one weak minded fool Hitlersmith.
There was no insurrection. Over 115 Republican legislators protested the Electoral College vote. There was only a delay of a few hours. Amongst the patriotic crowd were FBI stooges to provoke the trespassers. Historians will discover that Joe Biden was elected illegally. A fraudulent election means that Joe Biden is an illegitimate “President”. Regardless, crooked Joe will be considered the worst President ever, especially after he is impeached for selling his VP office to China, Russia, Ukraine, and other foreign counties. Biden’s open Southern border policy is a huge disaster that will haunt the U.S. for decades. For that he should be impeached. The prosecutions are Democrat political vengeance by a politicized DOJ and FBI.
If he cooperated with government cases and is truly repentant, give him a break and save the jail space for Trump and his cronies that conspired with fake electors, and guilty of fraud and tax evasion.
If we are jailing every single moron that made a terrible decision prodded by Trump and the right wing media, we will need more jails…
Your A stooped idiot He should be able to say & do as he wishes to do.. IT is still the USA!!! Did not kill any one!!
HitlerSmith doing the bidding of his heroes Hitler and Hitlerite Jokementia Bribery…
Sociopath Nazi rat bastrds is related to Newsom
Democrats have some puppets brainwashed. Real Americans know the difference between truth and lies, election integrity and rigging, law and order and corruption. But most of all we know the facts of all that democrats and rhinos have actually done to President Trump and his supporters. Pretty bad when people in democrat party are now pulling for President Trump. When will you puppets see that democrats can’t win honestly only when they rig elections like they have done for years. Anyone who watched J6 on TV that day seen antifia and informants of the swamp set up President Trump and his supporters. Antifa people are so obvious along with swamp informants on that day.
Tell me swamp puppets answer me these questions.
Why did swamp destroy evidence if President Trump was guilty?
Why go after President Trump if basement boy actually won?
Why were votes being counted while republicans were locked out of counting areas?
Why were votes taken from President Trump and given to basement boy?
Why are there so many people including democrats coming forward to tell of fraud?
Why did Pelosi have her daughter and grandson in the Capital on J6 when she knew trouble was ahead?
Why didn’t anyone stop electoral voting when states were not certifying their votes?
Why did so called Capital police lie about J6 when they testified?
Why has the Supreme Justices not done their jobs on all things President Trump?
Why every time President Trump tried to go through the courts on election fraud he was denied?
Why is President Trump in court over documents he was legally allowed as President, yet basement boy has millions of classified documents all over even in garage and no charges?
Why are so many people in swamp lying about Hunter laptop?
Why is the swamp allowed to attack President Trump even calling for his assassination and nothing done?
Why does the swamp keep saying no one is above the law, yet where is the charges for the real criminals in swamp?
Why have millions attended President Trump rallies, and told President Trump we love him, while basement boy was lucky to have a dozen even with gaga helping basement boy?
Why did President Trump receive three times more votes then basement boy in 2020 with republican down ballots?
Why are the swamp to hell bent on making sure no paper trails of J6, and all other information they have been destroying on a daily bases?
Why are President Trump associates being threatened by DOJ to lie about President Trump and when they don’t they receive life sentences?
Why have no charges been brought on any of the swamp?
Why are the media lying and all have same narrative daily except Newsmax?
Why haven’t any antifia been charged with crimes?
Why did Fauci and others lie to a sitting President and get by with it?
The way I see it is the swamp opened Pandora’s box and they are going to wish they hadn’t.
Those in the swamp need to read the Ten Commandments because your evil’s are going to come back to haunt you. Truth always prevails.
Basement boy builds walls around his homes paid for by us yet you open our boarders on us.
Tick tock tick tock every one knows your lies and games. Pretty bad when illegals you brought here are leaving now to home country because our government has lost minds.
Time for accountability of swamp and their puppets.
Newsom is their ideal sociopath to lead them to their Utopia. Find that planet for them
So many words to say absolutely NOTHING