VA - Car plows through counter-protest marchers at Klan/White Nationalist Rally, Aug 2017 *Guilty*

[YESorNO]

Kristen Clarke‏Verified account @KristenClarkeJD 2h2 hours ago
The murder trial for white supremacist James Alex Fields charged with killing Heather Heyer in Charlottesville is scheduled to begin on Monday. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/11/23/charlottesville-murder-trial-begin-james-alex-fields-jr/2091337002/ …

 

[YESorNO]

Fields jury selection could take days

11/25/2018

"...His trial in Charlottesville Circuit Court will begin with jury selection, a process that could last until mid-week. The pool of potential jurors totals 360 people, the largest in recent memory.

A questionnaire was given to potential jurors last month, to help remove those with biases before voir dire begins Monday. The commonwealth has not yet revealed how many potential jurors were removed from the pool based on their responses to the questionnaire....
Charlottesville officials and police are preparing for a deluge of media members, assigning the Levy Opera House as a satellite viewing location for those who cannot get a seat in the courthouse.

Joe Rice, deputy communications director for Charlottesville, said the city is expecting “well over” 100 members of the media to be present for the three-week trial....

Fields faces 10 state charges: first-degree murder, three counts of malicious wounding, three counts of aggravated malicious wounding, two counts of felonious assault and one count of hit and run.

In June, a federal grand jury indicted Fields on 30 hate crime charges, for which he could face the death penalty.

In that case, Fields is charged with one count of a hate crime resulting in the death of Heyer; 28 counts of hate crime acts causing bodily injury and involving an attempt to kill; and one count of racially motivated violent interference with a federally protected activity, resulting in Heyer’s death.

His federal trial has not been scheduled yet.

Jury selection in the state trial begins at 9:30 a.m. Monday."

Fields jury selection could take days
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[JerseyGirl]

Jury selection is set to begin in the trial of an Ohio man accused of killing a woman during a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville last year.

James Alex Fields Jr., of Maumee, Ohio, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 32-year-old Heather Heyer. Fields is accused of driving his car into a crowd of people protesting the white nationalists. Heyer was killed and dozens of others were injured.

Fields' trial is scheduled to begin Monday in Charlottesville Circuit Court

Trial to begin for man charged in white nationalist rally

 

[YESorNO]

Couldn't find anyone from the media posting tweets, but I found her (don't know who she is- not from the media tho'- she says "live tweeter of charlottesville government proceedings"???):

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 4m4 minutes ago
jury selection is moving along slowly. when we were allowed into the courtroom shortly before 10am, only 69 jurors remained. a pool of 28 has been selected at random & they’ll do the majority of voir dire individually in chambers.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 52m52 minutes ago
the only two pieces of information of note so far, in my opinion, are that the defense plans to call officer tammy shifflett as a witness — she was the officer who left her post at 4th street on august 12th, leaving it open to traffic,


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 53m53 minutes ago
and they affirmed that they intend to argue “the defendant believed he was acting in self defense.” i was pretty sure this is where they were headed but it’s a real gut punch to hear it said aloud in court.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 48m48 minutes ago
all of the potential jurors responded that they’ve read media coverage of the event. more than half said they already had some opinion about it. individual voir dire will probe these opinions more deeply & determine if they are able to hear the case impartially.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 49m49 minutes ago
the defense’s motion for a change of venue is still technically under advisement. i have faith that this court will be able to seat an impartial jury. remember, you don’t have to be ignorant of the case to hear evidence - you just have to be able to set your opinion aside.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 41m41 minutes ago
i’m going to head back to the courthouse momentarily but my ears are burning with the sound of defense counsel hill asking jurors “does anyone feel like using violence to defend yourself is never appropriate?”
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[YESorNO]

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
jury selection is plodding along. the judge says they’re about 1/3 of the way through individual voir dire on the pool of 28. jurors outside that group have been released until 5pm, so i assume we won’t see any jurors struck until at least 5.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
so we’ve got our pool of 28 being questioned individually, plus 41 jurors in the gallery ready to fill in for anyone who gets struck after individual questioning. but they’ve ALSO got a second pool of around 90 people scheduled to report tomorrow morning.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
it’s going slow, but that’s ok. i still firmly believe they’re going to be able to seat a jury, probably sometime tomorrow.
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[YESorNO]

James Alex Fields: Ohio man charged in white nationalist rally to argue self-defense (with clip)

Nov. 26, 2018

"CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — An Ohio man charged with killing a woman during a white nationalist rally in Virginia plans to argue that he believed he was acting in self-defense when he drove his car into a crowd of counter protesters.

A lawyer for James Alex Fields Jr. offered a glimpse of the defense strategy as jury selection began Monday in Charlottesville Circuit Court.

Attorney John Hill told a group of prospective jurors the jury will hear evidence that Fields "thought he was acting in self-defense."

Hill asked if any of the prospective jurors believe that using violence in self-defense is never appropriate. The jury trial in Charlottesville Circuit Court is scheduled to last for 18 days through Dec. 13, according to court records. ..."

James Alex Fields: Ohio man charged in white nationalist rally to argue self-defense
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What We Know About James Alex Fields, Driver Charged in Charlottesville Killing (with clip)

Aug. 13, 2017

"James Alex Fields Jr. of Ohio was charged with second-degree murder in Charlottesville, Va., on Saturday after the authorities said he drove a car into a crowd, leaving a 32-year-old woman dead and injuring at least 19 other people who were protesting a rally staged by white nationalists.

Background..."

What We Know About James Alex Fields, Driver Charged in Charlottesville Killing
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[JerseyGirl]

Charlottesville Trial Begins

 

[YESorNO]

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 3h3 hours ago
good morning to everyone except the jury pool in the fields case because the judge ordered y'all to stay away from social media so you're not reading this anyway. the second day of jury selection starts in an hour.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
today will almost certainly be nothing but more jury selection. at least 15 of yesterday’s pool of 28 potential jurors were struck, so the process of individual voir dire will start anew for at least that many jurors.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
if it’s much like yesterday, and i suspect it will be, there will be long empty stretches. i’ll check in with you all when i can!


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 21m21 minutes ago
of the 13 jurors brought up to begin individual voir dire this morning, two were dismissed right away - one for medical reasons and one because he is the sole proprietor of a business. these are both exemptions under the law & neither side objected to them being excused.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 3m3 minutes ago
the members of yesterday’s pool who were NOT selected to fill in empty seats in the group of 28 were told to report at 11am. today’s batch of 90 new jurors will report at 2pm. headed back into the courthouse momentarily.
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[YESorNO]

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2m2 minutes ago
jury selection will last through tomorrow, although it’s unclear how much of tomorrow. the second half of the jury pool, originally scheduled to appear this morning, has been instructed to report tomorrow morning. we’re nearing the end of the process with the first batch.
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[YESorNO]

Jury selection continuing slowly in trial of James Alex Fields (with clip)

Nov. 27, 2018

"CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Jury selection is continuing at a slow pace in the trial of an Ohio man accused of killing a woman during a white nationalist rally in Virginia last year....

Jury selection began Monday in a process Judge Richard Moore described as "slow going."

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that as of late Tuesday morning, four jurors had been agreed upon by prosecutors and Fields' lawyers.

The jury will be made up of 12 regular jurors, plus four alternates. Moore said Tuesday that he doesn't expect to seat a jury until Wednesday...."

Jury selection continuing slowly in trial of James Alex Fields
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[YESorNO]

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 3h3 hours ago
we are inching closer to empaneling a jury. it appears that only 10 more jurors need to selected to round out the group of 28 from which the final jury will be chosen. i would guess this will take most of tomorrow & we’ll see opening statements on thursday.
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[mister happy]

Below is the infamous crash video. The supporters of James Fields claim he panicked and sped up after his rear bumper was swung at and hit with a flag stick (0:03). I've watched this video many times but cannot tell if he actually did speed up. What do my fellow websleuthers think? The supporters claim his car was attacked by the man with the flag stick, but I think that man was just reacting to the fact that Fields was about to crash into the crowd. Fields was the one who was attacking. I wonder if the "stick man" will testify.

 

[Betty P]

Below is the infamous crash video. The supporters of James Fields claim he panicked and sped up after his rear bumper was swung at and hit with a flag stick (0:03). I've watched this video many times but cannot tell if he actually did speed up. What do my fellow websleuthers think? The supporters claim his car was attacked by the man with the flag stick, but I think that man was just reacting to the fact that Fields was about to crash into the crowd. Fields was the one who was attacking. I wonder if the "stick man" will testify.

I'm not seeing him speed up. It's very close to the moment when his car begins hitting protestors in the street. Had he planned to avoid hitting protestors, you would see him applying his brakes. JMO, it's a pretty weak excuse, but apparently that's all the defense has to work with.

It always sickens me to hear his tires squealing as he zooms down the street. Even worse as he backs up the street with shoes and other items of his victims falling from under his car. His intentions in speeding up so close to the crowd is very clear. If he felt "threatened" by the protestors, why was he speeding down the street towards them? He could have just avoided the area altogether.

I hope he spends the rest of his life behind bars. He's a menace and danger to society.

 

[YESorNO]

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 1h1 hour ago
we started out at 9:15 this morning with 13 potential jurors in the jury box. individual voir dire on this group will take through midday & a new batch will report at 1pm.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 1h1 hour ago
the 18 already selected were brought in & told to report back tomorrow morning at 9am, which means the judge is confident jury selection will be completed today, but that it will probably take all day. a total of 28 potential jurors must be chosen.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 1h1 hour ago
tomorrow will begin with peremptory strikes (each side will choose 6 jurors to eliminate) and then the trial will begin with opening statements thursday morning.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 1h1 hour ago
the court is having technical issues in the conference room, so individual voir dire is now being conducted in the courtroom, meaning the courtroom has been cleared & closed to the public. IT is working on the problem, but for now, if you were planning on coming out, don’t!


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 50m50 minutes ago
i was surprised to see the juror who was wearing a gigantic confederate flag belt buckle yesterday in the group of 18 people they’ve already selected. for all the questioning about bias, did they not see what she was wearing?
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[YESorNO]

Below is the infamous crash video. The supporters of James Fields claim he panicked and sped up after his rear bumper was swung at and hit with a flag stick (0:03). I've watched this video many times but cannot tell if he actually did speed up. What do my fellow websleuthers think? The supporters claim his car was attacked by the man with the flag stick, but I think that man was just reacting to the fact that Fields was about to crash into the crowd. Fields was the one who was attacking. I wonder if the "stick man" will testify.

I watched it many times and I can't tell if he sped up.

 

[YESorNO]

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 6m6 minutes ago
this is my first trial as a holder of press credentials and so far the only difference is i have to wear a lot of lanyards.

 

[YESorNO]

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 12m12 minutes ago
they should be wrapping up individual voir dire with this morning’s batch of potential jurors soon. the next group was told to report back at 1pm. we were 10 short of our panel of 28 this morning - hopefully we’re a bit closer now.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 13m13 minutes ago
however many we still need to hit that 28 will be randomly selected from the pool that is arriving this afternoon. there will be a short period of questions to the group in court then those jurors will be questioned individually in chambers.
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[YESorNO]

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 5h5 hours ago
it was brought to the court’s attention this morning that some members of the community have received a racist, anti semitic robocall related to this case. the judge instructed jurors to hang up immediately and report it to the court if they receive one.

 

[YESorNO]

28 picked to weigh Fields case as potential jurors asked about racist robocall

"Twenty-eight qualified jurors has been found from a pool of about 150 people to consider the fate of James Alex Fields Jr., the Ohio man accused of driving his car into a crowd of people during the Aug. 12, 2017, white supremacist Unite the Right rally.

And on Wednesday, the third day of questioning, some potential jurors were asked about a racist robocall circulating to some Charlottesville residents and businesses that blames city leaders for death of counter-protester Heather Heyer.

Sgt. Tony Newberry said the Charlottesville Police Department began hearing about the racist messages on Tuesday, and the case has been assigned an investigator. So far, he said, the content of the messages has not risen to the criminal level.

The robocall makes multiple false, racist and anti-Semitic claims, including blaming Councilor Mike Signer, who is Jewish, and former police Chief Al Thomas, who is black, of conspiring to make Fields a scapegoat. The call claims to be from an Idaho-based white supremacist group.

None of the potential jurors reported receiving the call. Judge Richard E. Moore instructed them to ignore the call and hang up if they receive it....

Only 12 jurors and four alternates ultimately will be seated. The selection of 28 allows for 12 peremptory strikes — six each for the commonwealth and the defense....

The trial is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in Charlottesville Circuit Court."

28 picked to weigh Fields case as potential jurors asked about racist robocall

(In this courtroom sketch Judge Richard Moore, top right, presides over the trial of James Alex Fields Jr. during the second day of jury selection in Charlottesville Circuit Court in Charlottesville, Va., Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018... [Izabel Zermani via AP])
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Fields trial set to begin Thursday (with clip)

"...The court individually questioned more than 70 potential jurors from a pool of 360 Charlottesville citizens to get the panel of 28 qualified jurors.

While 16 jurors will be sworn in Thursday morning, four of the 16 will be alternates....

The trial is expected to last three weeks, and the jury could hear from more than 50 witnesses. The witnesses could include police officers, mental health experts, citizens and Fields' mother."

Fields trial set to begin Thursday
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[YESorNO]

molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
today is the 4th day in the trial of james alex fields jr. he’s charged with 1st degree murder of heather heyer, 5 counts of aggravated malicious wounding, 3 counts of malicious wounding, & 1 felony hit & run. jury selection took 3 full days. opening statements will begin today.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
the original indictment showed 3 aggravated malicious wounding and 5 malicious wounding, but 2 of the malicious wounding charges were upgraded to aggravated just before the trial began. the difference being that aggravated means the injury caused permanent injury or disability.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
a malicious wounding in virginia carries a sentence of 5-20 years. aggravated malicious wounding carries the same penalty as the 1st degree murder charge: 20 to life. he could face six life sentences if convicted on all changes in this case.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
28 jurors will appear this morning. peremptory strikes will begin at 9:30 - each side will remove 6 jurors for any reason or no reason at all, leaving us with 16. there will be 4 alternate jurors hearing the case (though they won’t know they’re alternates until it’s over)


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
once we have 16 jurors, they’ll be sworn in, and opening statements will begin.


molly ‏ @socialistdogmom 2h2 hours ago
headed to the courthouse now. i’ll update you all as often as i can, probably at lunchtime. take care of each other. this is going to be a very difficult time for many of you
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As Trial Begins In Charlottesville Protest Death, Community Reflects

November 26, 2018

As Trial Begins In Charlottesville Protest Death, Community Reflects
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