Overview

• U.S. District Judge Thomas A. Varlan imposed a life sentence on July 2 after Kelley’s November 2024 conviction for conspiracy to murder federal employees, solicitation of violence and influencing officials by threat.
• Prosecutors detailed Kelley’s plan to use car bombs, incendiary drones and a “kill list” targeting agents from the FBI, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Tennessee Highway Patrol and local police departments.
• A federal judge rejected Kelley’s argument that President Trump’s January 2025 pardon for his Capitol riot offenses extended to the Tennessee assassination scheme.
• The FBI’s Knoxville Joint Terrorism Task Force led the investigation, supported by the DOJ’s National Security Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
• Kelley’s co-conspirator, Austin Carter, pleaded guilty earlier this year and is scheduled to be sentenced in August for his role in the conspiracy.