It’s one of those scenes you can’t unsee. Last August, in the midst of hate rallies in Charlottesville, VA, a young neo-Nazi named James Alex Fields, Jr. rammed his car into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing Heather Heyer. The incident was captured on video and we now know there were more angles recorded from cameras previously unknown. After seeing the different angles, the judge hearing the case upgraded the charge against Fields to first degree murder. The prosecution argued the video leaves little doubt the driver’s actions were premeditated.
Meanwhile, Heather Heyer’s mother, Susan Bro, says she has to keep the location of her daughter’s grave a secret because of ongoing threats from extremists.
“It’s a symptom of hate in society that you should have to protect your child’s grave, for Pete’s sake,” says Bro. “So, I’m protecting my child now.”
The Daily Beast talked with Bro who was in the courtroom when the murder charges against Fields were elevated from second degree to first.