COLUMBUS – A woman who identified herself as the mother of the Ohio man accused of driving his car into a crowd of peaceful protesters in Charlottesville, Va., says he told her he was going to the rally.
The Charlottesville Police Department said in a statement Saturday night that James Alex Fields Jr. has been charged with second-degree murder and other counts, three counts of malicious wounding, and one count related to leaving the scene.
Col. Martin Kumer, superintendent of the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail, said Fields, 20, was in custody there Saturday night. Kumer says he doesn’t believe Fields has obtained an attorney yet.
He says a bond hearing is scheduled for Monday.
Ohio stands behind Virginia as the state copes with this senseless violence. My full statement: pic.twitter.com/7lAXMmzkbD
— Sherrod Brown (@SenSherrodBrown) August 12, 2017
The tragedy in Charlottesville this afternoon was domestic terrorism. We must all condemn hatred and white nationalism.
— Rob Portman (@robportmanOH) August 12, 2017
Samantha Bloom confirmed details about her son’s car and his trip to Virginia, saying she received a text from him last week that said he’d gotten some time off from work and was going to a rally.
She said her son hadn’t given her any details about the rally but that she told him “to be careful” and to be peaceful.
Bloom became visibly upset as she learned that dozens of people were injured during a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville.
Bloom said she and Fields had just relocated to the Toledo area from Florence, Ky.
There is no place in America for this violence and vicious hatred coming from white nationalist, KKK & neo-nazi groups. 1/
— John Kasich (@JohnKasich) August 12, 2017
Three people died during the violent day in Charlottesville.
A 32-year-old woman was killed when a car allegedly driven by Fields plowed into a crowd of protesters. Two state police troopers were killed when their helicopter crashed in the woods on the outskirts of town.
Witnesses say the car plowed into a crowd of people who were protesting a rally, which was held by white nationalists who oppose the removal of a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee by the city of Charlottesville.
Video of the incident shows a silver Dodge Charger crashing into a car where protesters were marching and then rapidly reversing away.
Deepest condolences to the families & fellow officers of the VA State Police who died today. You're all among the best this nation produces.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 12, 2017
President Donald Trump is blaming “many sides” for the clashes and contends that the “hatred and bigotry” broadcast across the country had taken root long before his political ascendancy. Trump’s comments are drawing criticism from Republicans and Democrats who say he should be denouncing hate groups by name.
Charlottesville Mayor Michael Signer, a Democrat, says that he blames Trump for inflaming racial prejudices with his campaign last year. Sen. Cory Gardner, a Colorado Republican, says that the president “must call evil by its name.”
Virginia’s governor declared a state of emergency in response to the rally that was expected to draw up to 6,000 people.
U.S. officials have opened a civil rights investigation into the circumstances of the deadly car attack. The investigation was announced late Saturday by officials of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia and the Richmond field office of the FBI.