He drove his car into a crowd in Charlottesville. Now the question is why (with clip)
November 29, 2018
"...The prosecution has alleged in court documents that Fields drove the car into the crowd with the intention of hurting people he targeted based on his bigoted views.
Prosecutors told the jury they'd present Instagram posts Fields posted in May 2017, two months before the Unite the Right rally, that they said depicted a car running into a crowd of people described as protesters.
But an attorney for Fields told prospective jurors this week that he acted in self-defense, according to CNN affiliate WVIR.
"Ms. Antony is correct. This is not a whodunit case," said defense attorney John Hill in his own opening statement. "This is not about who drove that car."
Hill described counterprotesters as acting hostile towards Fields, and claimed that his client saw one with a gun in his hands. Hill added that Fields said "he was scared to death" when he was apprehended by police.
"It is our hope at the end of the trial you'll find Fields not guilty of the charges," Hill said.
Attorneys offered their opening statements after the jury in Fields' was finalized Thursday morning. Judge Richard Moore has allotted 18 days for the trial...."
Heather Heyer killing: He drove his car into a crowd in Charlottesville. Now the question is why - CNN
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Charlottesville driver Alex Fields's murder trial begins with question of mindset
The defense says Fields "was scared to death" and also remorseful.
"...During opening statements at his murder trial, prosecutors and defense lawyers painted two starkly different pictures of what prompted Fields — a 21-year-old reputed Hitler admirer — to drive his gray Dodge Challenger into a crowd of people in Charlottesville on Aug. 12, 2017.
Prosecutor Nina-Alice Antony told the jury that Fields was angry after fighting broke out earlier that day between white nationalists who came to Charlottesville to protest the planned removal of a statute of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee and others who came to protest against them.
Antony said Fields had driven all night from his home in Maumee, Ohio, to attend the rally in support of white nationalists. A former teacher of Fields has said he was fascinated by Nazism and admired Adolf Hitler. Three months before the rally, Fields twice posted on Instagram an image of a crowd being struck by a car, Antony said, adding that the people in the crowd were described as "protesters."
"This case is about his decision to act on that anger," Antony said.
Defense attorney John Hill agreed there's no doubt Fields drove the car that careened into the crowd, but Hill said it happened after hours of violent clashes between white nationalists and counterprotesters, including street brawling, people throwing bottles and the use of tear gas and chemical sprays.
Hill said Fields eventually met up with two other people who will testify that he was not angry and appeared calm when he gave them a ride to their cars. A short time later, Fields drove into the crowd.
Hill told jurors they will hear testimony from a police officer who pulled Fields over after the crash. "You'll hear James tell the officer that he feared for his safety, that he was scared to death," he said. Fields also expressed remorse about the people who were hurt, Hill said...."
Charlottesville driver Alex Fields's murder trial begins with question of mindset
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