As the city of Charlottesville, Virginia, braced for the two-year anniversary of the deadly Unite the Right rally, a federal judge sanctioned some white nationalist defendants in the lawsuit that is attempting to hold them accountable for the violence. Thirty-five people were injured, and one woman died when a neo-Nazi drove through a crowd of counter-protesters, and two police officers died later that day in a helicopter crash. A lawsuit is trying to prove that the August 2017 violence was planned.
The judge had already warned several defendants they were at risk for failing to turn over messages and devices, and on Friday, he hit three of them-- Matthew Heimbach, Elliot Kline, and a group called Vanguard America-- with monetary sanctions. Legal analyst Scott Goodman:
"The judge ran out of patience, the defendants were out of time, and the judge put the hammer down."
Goodman says the defendants could face jail time if they continue to defy judicial orders. Meanwhile, on the weekend leading up to the August 12th anniversary, no white nationalists rallied. Instead, downtown spent the weekend in festival mode, with an array of City-sponsored musical and educational programs called Unity Days.
