James Fields Jr. found guilty of first-degree murder after ramming car through Charlottesville crowd and killing Heather Heyer – By David Boroff and Nancy Dillon (nydailynews.com) / Dec 7 2018
A white nationalist was convicted of first-degree murder and all other counts Friday after a jury found he intentionally drove his car into a group of counter-protesters at the 2017 “Unite the Right” rally in Virginia, killing Heather Heyer.
James Fields Jr., who had been known for idolizing Adolf Hitler, was tried in Charlottesville Circuit Court. In addition to the murder count, he was also convicted of five counts of aggravated malicious wounding, three counts of malicious wounding and one count of failing to stop at an accident involving a death.
He drove his Dodge Challenger toward the counterprotesters on Aug. 12, 2017, and fatally struck Heyer, who was 32.
Heyer, a paralegal and civil right activist, was one of dozens of people who were marching against the white nationalists.
“The moment before I got hit, I saw Heather get hit. I saw her eyes. I saw her fly through the air. I will never forget that. We all wanted justice for Heather, so this is an enormous relief,” injured victim Star Peterson, who testified at the trial, told the Daily News late Friday.
“I didn’t realize what a heavy weight I was carrying around. I just feel so light right now,” she said.
Peterson, who suffered two broken legs and a broken back in the attack, was in the courtroom when the verdict was read and said Fields showed no emotion.
“He really didn’t have much of a reaction. He looked at his mom a little, but that was it. I watched him a lot during the trial. Many days he acted like he was drugged. The only time he really sat up straight and paid attention was when they showed video of his arrest,” she said.
Peterson said she plans to deliver a victim impact statement at Fields’ sentencing and ask for the maximum life sentence for the aggravated malicious wounding charge related to her injuries.
She’s now in a wheelchair, awaiting a sixth surgery next April, and is relying on donations from the Heal Charlottesville fund to help keep her afloat during her recovery.
The 2017 rally that led to the counter-protest included hundreds of Ku Klux Klan members, neo-Nazis and other white nationalists. It was organized in part to protest the planned removal of a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
A counterprotester holds a photo of Heather Heyer during a rally in Massachusetts. (Michael Dwyer/AP)
During the trial, jurors heard phone calls from Fields’ mother to the jail, including one where he referred to Heyer’s mother as a “communist” and “one of those anti-white supremacists.”
In addition, a judge allowed jurors to see a text message sent by Fields that included an image of Hitler.
Fields’ lawyers argued during the trial that he was “scared to death” when he drove into the crowd after seeing violent clashes earlier in the day. He told a sheriff’s deputy “I’m so sorry” after he was apprehended, the law enforcement official testified.
In a video played for the jury, Fields cried and hyperventilated after police told him a woman had died and others had been injured.
Susan Bro, Heyer’s mother, said before the trial that she is doubtful it will bring closure for her.
“I’m not obsessed with him,” she said of Fields. “I feel like I’ve turned him over to the justice system. He’s their problem, not mine.”
She declined to speak with reporters as she left the courthouse Friday.
Peterson said after the verdict, she and a group of survivors and activists went back to the location where Heyer was hit.
“We honored her and recommitted ourselves to the fight against racism and fascism,” she told The News. “Everyone who was there that day will never ever be able to forget the horror of it. At least now we have some justice.”
https://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/ny-news-james-fields-verdict-20181206-story.html
