CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — A prosecutor has told a jury that a man who killed a woman and injured dozens of people at a white nationalist rally had images of hatred and violence in his mind when he drove his car into a crowd of counterprotesters.
James Alex Fields Jr. is accused of first-degree murder and other counts in the deadly crash in Charlottesville on Aug. 12, 2017.
Prosecutors say Fields traveled from his home in Maumee, Ohio, to support white nationalists at the rally. During closing arguments Thursday, prosecutor Nina-Alice Anthony said Fields was angry at the counterprotesters and deliberately aimed his car at them, then sped into the crowd, knowing he would hurt or kill someone.
She said: "He gets toward that group and he goes for them."
Fields' lawyers have said he was afraid for his life when he drove into the crowd after witnessing earlier violence between the white nationalists and counterprotesters. The defense is slated to make its closing argument late Thursday afternoon.
