TAMPA, Fla. — Caleb Berry joined the Oath Keepers in late 2020 because he believed the lie that the presidential election was rigged, and he wanted to do something about it. The group gave the then-19-year-old Tampa man the sense of belonging and acceptance.

But Berry became disillusioned after he saw what happened on Jan. 6, 2021. He was particularly disturbed to see the mob brutalize U.S. Capitol police officers.

With the threat of prison looming, he agreed to testify, becoming a key witness in the government’s cases against members of the anti-government extremist group.

As Berry, now 23, faces sentencing Friday in Washington, D.C., for his role in the assault on America’s legislative branch of government, prosecutors have noted his “courage” and asked that a judge go easy on him.

They want Berry to receive no prison time, asking instead for three years of probation, plus an order to pay $2,000 in restitution. In a sentencing memo, they noted his “fulsome acceptance of responsibility” and “extensive assistance to law enforcement.” His cooperation, prosecutors said, was essential in illuminating the group’s internal discussions and planning for Jan. 6.

In the aftermath of Jan. 6, he wrote a letter to several police officers who defended the Capitol that day.

“I sincerely regret what I did on Jan. 6, 2021,” Berry wrote. “I am ashamed of what happened that day. I wanted to apologize to you and to the country. I am sorry for the pain and anguish I have caused you and your families.”

Berry pleaded guilty soon after his arrest in 2021 to conspiracy and obstruction of an official proceeding. Although federal sentencing guidelines suggest prison, Berry’s cooperation may spare him incarceration.

A sentencing memo filed by Barry’s defense attorney, Daniel Fernandez, describes him as family-oriented and patriotic, but also troubled and naïve.

“He joined the Oath Keepers with the hopes of belonging to an organization where he could satisfy his desire to exercise his patriotism and love for his country,” Fernandez wrote. “However, his youthfulness and naivety impaired his judgement and it was too late before he realized he had made a very poor choice.”

Berry grew up in Tampa amid troubled circumstances, according to the memo. His parents were both teenagers when they had him. He never knew his father. His mother struggled with addiction. As a teen, he was victimized by bullies, and grappled with depression and anxiety. Despite the adversity he endured, he managed to build a life. He graduated from Hillsborough High School in 2019. He worked in a supermarket. He dreamed of becoming a cop.

Like many, he believed former President Donald Trump’s lies about the 2020 election having been rigged. He joined the Florida chapter of the Oath Keepers in the weeks thereafter because he wanted to do something about it.

The far-right anti-government group is known to recruit people with military and law enforcement experience. It was part of what drew Berry to them, as he saw them as a potential route to joining the armed forces. With them, he found a sense of belonging and acceptance, according to the defense.

He was part of an effort to provide “security” to Roger Stone when the Trump confidant visited a St. Petersburg bar, the memo stated. He participated in group chats the Florida Oath Keepers hosted on Signal, an encrypted messaging application. In one exchange, he expressed a willingness to give his life for the country.

“I’m fighting for the future of my family and my children, for their children,” he wrote. “I’ll die for it.”

Kelly Meggs, the leader of the Florida Oath Keepers, praised Berry’s passion.

“That, sir, makes you a badass!” Meggs wrote.

The defense memo states that Berry first believed the group’s Jan. 6 activities would be to provide security to members of Congress who were scheduled to address the public. It describes him as having a limited understanding of their plans and doing what he was told by higher-ranking members.

He traveled with the group to Washington, D.C., staying in a hotel. On Jan. 6, they attended Trump’s speech, then marched to the Capitol. Clad in military attire, including ballistic vests and helmets, the Oath Keepers worked their way through the crowd in a military “stack” formation.

In court, Berry explained the realization that they intended to take the Capitol by force and stop the certification of the presidential election in order to help Trump stay in power. He saw rioters attacking police. He was terrified.

The group was at the front lines of the mob as they muscled their way inside. The Oath Keepers then split up. Berry remained with one group that wandered near the House of Representatives looking for Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Berry returned to his hotel that day feeling disillusioned and disturbed, according to court records. He felt “used and betrayed.” After his return to Florida, he resigned from the Oath Keepers.

Prosecutors noted that he exuded calm and maturity when he appeared before juries, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn Rakoczy wrote in a court paper. His cooperation, though, came at an immense personal cost.

“The way that Berry has owned the severity of his conduct and the extent of his mistakes stands in stark contrast to the blame-shifting, responsibility-denying comments made by the more senior leaders of this conspiracy,” Rakoczy wrote.

His cooperation, though, was personally taxing. On the witness stand, prosecutors said, his clothes became soaked in sweat. After enduring six rounds of questioning from defense lawyers, Berry became physically ill.

He remains haunted by what he saw. He has regular nightmares, according to the defense memo. When a forensic psychologist interviewed him ahead of his sentencing, he began to cry as he talked about how his participation in Jan. 6 might foreclose his goals of joining the military or becoming a police officer.

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