联邦检察官已经开始与大多数自称誓言守卫者民兵组织成员进行“非正式的辩诉谈判”，这些成员被指控参与了一个大范围的阴谋案件，涉及1月6日起义一名检察官在周二的听证会上说。
检察官说，政府律师已经开始讨论为被告宣誓作证者提供的认罪协议的参数，并补充说，虽然这些讨论仍然是非正式的和“初步的”，但政府希望“在未来一两个月内”提供正式的认罪协议。
就在一天前，政府起诉了四名新的个人，使该案中面临指控的宣誓作证者人数达到16人，指控范围从阴谋和阻挠到内乱和袭击官员。约瑟夫·哈克特(Joseph Hackett)、杰森·多兰(Jason Dolan)、威廉·艾萨克斯(William Isaacs)和另一个名字被从档案中删除的人是通过一份替代起诉书加入的。
该案称，参与1月6日国会大厦袭击的一些暴徒之间进行了协调，认罪协议将标志着政府调查向前迈出了重要一步。总共有近20个自称誓言守护者成员根据美国广播公司新闻部对逮捕记录的分析，已被指控与暴乱有关。
新的起诉书增加了宣誓看守人领导人之间所谓通信的新细节斯图尔特·罗兹以及导致暴乱的组织成员。罗兹没有被指控或指控与袭击有关的不当行为，但检察官在法庭文件中一再引用他的通信，称他为“第一人”。
此前在调查中提交的法律文件专门将罗兹的名字与检方随后认定为据称由“第一人”发送的信息联系在一起，并描述“第一人”为誓言守卫者的领导人和创始人。
起诉书指控罗兹早在11月9日就给该组织成员发了信息，提出前总统唐纳德·特朗普采取行动动员他的追随者帮助扭转他在2020年选举中的损失。
根据起诉书，罗兹据称说:“我们将为总统，这位合法当选的总统辩护，我们呼吁他做需要做的事情来拯救我们的国家。”“因为如果你们不这样做，你们将会陷入一场血腥的内战，一场血腥的——你们可以称之为暴动，也可以称之为战争或战斗。”
在1月4日的一篇文章中，罗兹还提到了一名武装人员快速反应部队“驻扎在华盛顿特区以外，如果该市爆发暴力事件，或者特朗普援引《叛乱法》，可以动员起来。
吉姆·博格/路透社
杰西卡·玛丽·沃特金斯(左)和多诺万·雷·克罗尔(中)，两人都来自俄亥俄州，沿着东海岸行进
根据起诉书，罗兹据称写道:“我们不指望他现在需要为此呼吁我们，但如果他这样做了，我们随时准备好(如果他援引《叛乱法》，我们也随时准备响应号召，在未来的任何时候，在我们国家的任何地方充当民兵。”
总体而言，超过450人被指控与1月6日的袭击有关，最近几周，越来越多的律师表示，他们正在与政府进行抗辩讨论。
仍不清楚政府的辩诉交易会是什么样子，或者被告是否会接受。然而，检察官表示，他们预计至少有一些被告会认罪。
在周二的听证会上，当地区法官阿米特·梅塔(Amit Mehta)就如何对16名被告进行审判提出问题时，检察官回应称，在不知道认罪谈判将会发生什么的情况下，这些对话“为时过早”。
一名检察官表示:“让辩护律师有时间继续查阅材料，让双方进行谈判，并在60天内看到我们的进展，这是合理和谨慎的。”。“到那时，我们就能更好地有意义地讨论审判日期以及这些审判日期可能会是什么样子。”
Prosecutors begin 'informal plea negotiations' with Oath Keepers charged in Jan. 6 conspiracy case
Federal prosecutors have begun "informal plea negotiations" with most of the self-described Oath Keepers militia members charged in a sweeping conspiracy case involving theJan. 6 insurrection, a prosecutor said during a hearing in the case Tuesday.
Government attorneys have started to discuss the parameters of what plea offers for the accused Oath Keepers might look like, the prosecutor said, adding that while those discussions remain informal and "preliminary at this time," the government hopes to offer formal plea deals "over the next month or two."
The development came just one day after the government indicted four new individuals, bringing to 16 the number of accused Oath Keepers facing charges in the case, which range from conspiracy and obstruction to civil disorder and assaulting officers. Joseph Hackett, Jason Dolan, William Isaacs, and another person whose name was redacted from the filing were added through a superseding indictment.
The case alleges coordination between some of the rioters who participated in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, and plea deals would mark a significant step forward in the government's investigation. In total, nearly 20 self-describedOath Keepers membershave been charged in connection with the riot, according to an ABC News analysis of arrest records.
The new indictment adds new details about the alleged communications between Oath Keepers leaderStewart Rhodesand members of the group leading up to the riot. Rhodes has not been charged or accused of wrongdoing in connection with the attack, but prosecutors have repeatedly cited his communications in court filings, referring to him as "Person One."
Previous legal filings in the investigation have linked Rhodes' name specifically to communications that prosecutors have subsequently identified as messages allegedly sent by "Person One," and have also described "Person One" as the Oath Keepers' leader and founder.
Rhodes is alleged in the indictment to have messaged members of the group as early as Nov. 9, raising the idea of former President Donald Trump taking action to mobilize his followers to help reverse his loss in the 2020 election.
"We're going to defend the president, the duly elected president, and we call on him to do what needs to be done to save our country," Rhodes allegedly said, according to the indictment. "Because if you don't guys, you're going to be in a bloody, bloody civil war, and a bloody -- you can call it an insurrection or you can call it a war or fight."
In a Jan. 4 post, Rhodes also allegedly made reference to an armed "Quick Reaction Force" stationed outside of Washington, D.C., that could be mobilized in the event that violence erupted in the city or if Trump invoked the Insurrection Act.
"We don't expect a need for him to call on us for that at this time, but we stand ready if he does (and we also stand ready to answer the call to serve as militia anytime in the future, and anywhere in our nation, if he does invoke the Insurrection Act)," Rhodes allegedly wrote, according to the indictment.
Overall, more than 450 individuals have been charged in connection with the Jan. 6 attack, and in recent weeks a growing number of attorneys have said they are engaged in plea discussions with the government.
Still unclear is what the government's plea offers might look like, or whether defendants would even accept them. However, prosecutors have said they do expect at least some defendants to plead out.
When District Judge Amit Mehta, in Tuesday's hearing, raised questions about how a trial with sixteen defendants would proceed, prosecutors responded that those conversations would be "premature" without knowing what's going to happen with the plea negotiations.
"It would make sense and be prudent to allow the defense counsel the time to continue going through materials, to allow the parties to engage in negotiations and to see where we are in 60 days," a prosecutor said. "And at that point in time we would be in a much better position to meaningfully discuss trial dates and what those trial dates might look like."
