Neo-Nazi sympathizer found guilty in 'Unite the Right' trial of murdering Heather Heyer
James Alex Fields Jr., a young neo-Nazi sympathizer from Ohio, was found guilty of first-degree murder and multiple other charges on Friday in a trial stemming from last year's racist "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
A jury in Charlottesville Circuit Court found Fields guilty of murdering 32-year-old paralegal Heather Heyer by driving his car into a crowd of counterprotestors following the rally. He was also found guilty of five counts of aggravated malicious wounding, three counts of malicious wounding and a count of hit and run.
Prosecutors revealed during the trial that Fields sent a photo of Adolf Hitler to his mother before the attack. He was also spotted marching with members of the neo-Nazi hate group Vanguard America during the rally, although the group has denied he was a member.
The 21-year-old faces a sentence of 20 years to life in the murder, according to the Charlottesville Daily Progress.
