Who Is Augustus Sol Invictus?
Augustus Sol Invictus — born Austin Mitchell Gillespie on July 31, 1984 — is a Florida attorney, far-right political activist, and convicted felon whose legal career has now been overtaken by the consequences of his participation in one of the most infamous episodes of political violence in recent American history.
Invictus earned his law degree from DePaul University College of Law in 2011 and was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2012. He practiced criminal defense in Orlando under The Invictus Law Firm, located at 424 E. Central Blvd., Suite 731, Orlando, Florida. He was also admitted to the Illinois Bar in 2013.
Before his legal career unraveled, Invictus was a fringe but prominent figure in far-right politics. In 2016, he ran for the U.S. Senate in Florida as a Libertarian Party candidate. The campaign was deeply controversial from the start: the chairman of the Libertarian Party of Florida, Adrian Wyllie, resigned rather than share a party with Invictus, calling him a “violent fascist and neo-Nazi.” Invictus lost the primary overwhelmingly, receiving just 26.5% of the vote.
His notoriety extended well beyond electoral politics. He was a headline speaker at the August 12, 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia — the event that ended with a white supremacist driving a car into a crowd of counterprotesters, killing activist Heather Heyer. Rally organizer Richard Spencer credited Invictus with drafting early language for the “Charlottesville Statement,” a white nationalist manifesto distributed before the event.
The Night Before: August 11, 2017 — The UVA Torch March
The charge that ultimately cost Invictus his law license stems not from the rally itself but from the night before — August 11, 2017 — when hundreds of white nationalists, neo-Nazis, and far-right extremists staged a torchlit march across the grounds of the University of Virginia, chanting “Jews will not replace us” and surrounding a small group of counterprotesters at the base of a statue of Thomas Jefferson near the Rotunda.
Invictus was among the organizers and participants of that march, carrying a tiki torch alongside hundreds of others. One Black counterprotester who testified at trial recalled that when he saw the size of the torch-carrying crowd surrounding him, he thought of lynching. “It was literally like every racial nightmare, like the Klan,” he testified. “They got very close — two or three arm’s lengths away.”
Invictus reportedly remarked during the march: “Somebody forgot the pitchforks at home, so all we got is torches.”
The Indictment, Trial, and Conviction
The criminal case moved slowly. A Virginia grand jury in Albemarle County issued an indictment on April 3, 2023 — nearly six years after the march — charging Invictus with one count of burning an object on the property of another or a public place with intent to intimidate, in violation of Virginia Code § 18.2-423.01. The statute, commonly known as Virginia’s “cross-burning statute,” was originally designed to drive the Ku Klux Klan out of the state and carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison as a Class 6 felony.
Invictus was arrested on July 20, 2023, and was granted a $7,500 bond. A jury trial before Judge Richard E. Moore in Albemarle Circuit Court took place October 8–11, 2024. Invictus chose not to represent himself, retaining defense attorney Terrell Roberts III. The defense argued throughout the trial that Invictus was being prosecuted for his political beliefs and that the torch march was protected speech under the First Amendment.
The prosecution took a different view. Lead prosecutor Lawton Tufts told the jury: “This is not about speech. You should not and you cannot punish this man for his expression, but you can and should punish him for breaking the law.”
On October 11, 2024, the jury found Invictus guilty. The verdict marked the first time Virginia’s cross-burning statute had secured a conviction in a jury trial, out of the many cases arising from the August 11, 2017 march. The jury found that Invictus committed the act “in a manner having a direct tendency to place another person in reasonable fear or apprehension of bodily injury or death.”
Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney Jim Hingeley called the verdict “a historic moment,” noting that the prosecution had put to rest years of arguments that a torch is not a burning object and that the conduct was constitutionally protected.
Sentencing
On March 3, 2025, Judge Moore sentenced Invictus to five years of incarceration with the Virginia Department of Corrections, with all but nine months and two weeks suspended. He was also ordered to serve two years of supervised probation upon release.
Invictus filed a notice of appeal on March 3, 2025. He failed to meet the appellate brief filing deadline of September 17, 2025, submitting it two days late. The Court of Appeals of Virginia dismissed his appeal on October 8, 2025. A motion to reinstate the appeal, filed the following day, was denied on October 28, 2025 — finalizing the criminal case.
Florida Bar Suspension
On October 21, 2025, The Florida Bar filed a Notice of Determination or Judgment of Guilt with the Florida Supreme Court, triggering automatic suspension proceedings under Rule 3-7.2(f) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar.
On October 22, 2025, the Florida Supreme Court issued its order:
“The Florida Bar having filed on October 21, 2025, Notice of Determination or Judgment of Guilt, it is ordered that Augustus Sol Invictus is suspended from The Florida Bar pursuant to Rule 3-7.2(f) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar.”
The court granted a 30-day period for Invictus to wind down his practice and protect the interests of existing clients. The suspension was confirmed in the Florida Bar’s official January 1, 2026 disciplinary report.
Case Number: SC2025-1655
The Florida Bar’s position was that Invictus’s criminal conduct violated Rule 4-8.4(b) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, which prohibits attorneys from committing a criminal act that reflects adversely on their honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness as a lawyer.
Illinois Disciplinary Complaint
Florida is not the only jurisdiction moving against Invictus. In February 2026, the Administrator of the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission filed a disciplinary complaint against Invictus based on the same Virginia felony conviction, alleging violations of Rule 8.4(b) of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct. The Illinois complaint requests that the matter be assigned to a Hearing Board panel for findings of fact, conclusions of law, and a recommendation for appropriate discipline.
Invictus was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 2013.
Broader Background
Invictus’s criminal history extends beyond the Virginia conviction. In January 2020, he was arrested in Florida on a South Carolina warrant for charges including kidnapping, domestic violence, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime, stemming from allegations that he had taken his wife and their children at gunpoint. He was acquitted of the domestic violence charge at trial in April 2022 after the victim did not testify.
As an attorney, Invictus previously represented Marcus Faella, the former head of the white supremacist group American Front, in an appeal of a domestic terrorism conviction.
He is the publisher of The Revolutionary Conservative, a publication that, according to published reports, calls for a violent uprising and aims to “restore the American republic and defend Western civilization.”
Disciplinary Summary
Attorney: Augustus Sol Invictus (born Austin Mitchell Gillespie) Florida Bar Number: Admitted 2012 Address: 424 E. Central Blvd., Suite 731, Orlando, FL Case Number: SC2025-1655 Discipline: Suspended — effective 30 days from October 22, 2025 court order Basis: Felony conviction — Virginia Code § 18.2-423.01 (burning an object with intent to intimidate, Class 6 felony) Rule Violated: Florida RPC 4-8.4(b) — Criminal act reflecting adversely on fitness as a lawyer Virginia Sentence: 5 years, all but 9 months and 2 weeks suspended; 2 years supervised probation Confirmed: Florida Bar January 1, 2026 Disciplinary Report Illinois: Separate disciplinary complaint pending as of February 2026
Reinstatement
Under Florida Bar rules, an attorney suspended for 91 days or more must demonstrate rehabilitation before regaining their law license. Given that Invictus’s suspension is tied to a felony conviction — and that he faces a pending incarceration sentence and a separate disciplinary proceeding in Illinois — reinstatement is far from certain.
Invictus must also fully comply with Rule 3-5.1(h) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, which requires suspended attorneys to notify all clients, opposing counsel, and tribunals of their suspension and file a sworn affidavit confirming compliance.
Sources and Authorities
- The Florida Bar, January 1, 2026 Disciplinary Actions — floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-news/january-1-2026-disciplinary-actions/
- ALABnews, “Attorney Augustus Sol Invictus Suspended by Florida Supreme Court Over Virginia Felony Conviction” (December 8, 2025) — alabnews.com
- ALABnews, “Attorney Augustus Sol Invictus Faces Illinois Disciplinary Complaint Over Virginia Felony Conviction” (February 5, 2026) — alabnews.com
- The Daily Progress, “Unite the Right Participant Augustus Invictus Convicted” (October 11, 2024) — dailyprogress.com
- CBS19 News, “Invictus Sentenced in Connection with 2017 Torch March” (January 2025) — cbs19news.com
- SPLC Hatewatch, “Speaker at Unite the Right Rally Charged” — splcenter.org
- Wikipedia, “Augustus Sol Invictus” — en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustus_Sol_Invictus
- Florida Supreme Court, Case No. SC2025-1655, The Florida Bar v. Augustus Sol Invictus
- Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, Rule 3-7.2(f), Rule 3-5.1(h), Rule 4-8.4(b) — floridabar.org
- Virginia Code § 18.2-423.01 — Burning Object with Intent to Intimidate
