Klete Keller Sentenced to Six Months Home Detention, Three Years Probation for Role in January 6 Insurrection
Almost three years after Klete Keller participated in the January 6, 2021 insurrection protesting the results of the previous Presidential election, a judge has sentenced Keller to six months of home detention plus three years probation for his role within the mob and entering the U.S. Capitol. Keller, a U.S. Olympic swimmer in 2000, 2004 and 2008 and a five-time medalist, avoided jail time.
According to the Associated Press, judge Richard Leon announced the sentence for Keller, which includes 360 hours of community service (10 hours per month during his probation). Prosecutors had asked for a 10-month prison sentence, but Leon opted against that sentence, directing Keller to spend his probation time “speaking to teenagers and college students about his mistakes,” according to the AP. “If there ever was a case that screams out for probation, this is it, Leon said.
Keller pleaded guilty to obstruction of Congress in 2021 as one of the first Jan. 6 defendants to cooperate with federal agents, and the 41-year-old has expressed remorse for his actions. “I have no excuse for why I am in front of you today,” Keller said, per the AP. “I understand my actions were criminal and that I am fully responsible for my conduct.”
Prosecutors noted how Keller had brought shame to the U.S. Olympic team jacket, decorated with an American flag and a “USA logo,” that he wore to the Capitol on Jan. 6. After wearing the apparel while committing a federal crime, Keller threw away the jacket and smashed his cell phone. But after surrendering to prosecutors one week after the insurrection, Keller has cooperated fully with authorities. The Associated Press report on Keller’s sentencing noted that Keller’s early guilty plea “undoubtedly reached thousands of others weighing whether to turn themselves in, plead guilty, or even cooperate.”
Read the full report from the Associated Press here.
More Coverage
- Keller Faces New Charges Over Capitol Riot From Grand Jury Indictment
- Keller Charged in Federal Court After US Capitol Insurrection
- USA Swimming Releases Damning Statement of Klete Keller’s Role in Capitol Insurrection
- Keller Turns Himself In to Authorities Amidst Federal Charges
- Olympians React to Keller’s Involvement at Capitol: ‘Terrible Reflection on the Sport’
- Gold Medalist to Capitol Insurrection: Tracing the Rise and Fall of Klete Keller
- Keller Apologizes to Coaches: ‘I Let You Down’, According to New York Times
- Keller Pleads Not Guilty to Capitol Insurrection Charges
- Keller Discussing Plea Deal Over U.S. Capitol Insurrection Charges
- Keller ‘Prepared to Go Forward’ with Capitol Insurrection Plea Agreement
- Keller Pleads Guilty to Felony Charge Over Jan. 6 Capitol Insurrection
- Keller Cooperating with Authorities, Could Testify in Jan. 6 Trials
This glows more than a poptart in a nuclear reactor.