White nationalist leader denied bail at hearing on pepper-spray charges linked to Charlottesville clashes
August 25, 2017 by admin
Filed under Choosing Lingerie
Christopher Cantwell, the brash white nationalist prominently featured in a Vice documentary on the Charlottesville protests, was denied bail Thursday on felony charges of using illegal tear gas and malicious bodily injury during the weekend clashes.
Cantwell, 36, has acknowledged in an interview with The Associated Press that he had pepper-sprayed a counter-demonstrator but insisted he was acting in self-defense.
The Albemarle County General District Court judge said Cantwell’s attorney could request a future bond hearing, The Daily Progress reported. Otherwise, his next court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 12.
Cantwell, from Keene, N.H., faces two charges of illegal use of tear gas, phosgene or other gases and one charge of malicious bodily injury by means of a caustic substance or agent, according to the University of Virginia Police Department.
The alt-right leader, who has a penchant for wearing T-shirts and carrying firearms, turned himself in to police late Wednesday after an arrest warrant was issued related to his activities at a torch-it parade on the UVA campus on the eve of an Aug. 12 “Unite the Right” rally.
He had been scheduled to speak at the Saturday rally, called to protest the planned removal of a statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee at a Charlottesville park, but the event was shut down by police as an unlawful assembly following the clashes between protesters and counter-protesters.
Cantwell was a key figure in the 22-minuteVice News Tonight documentary of the Charlotteville protests, frequently speaking to embedded Vice reporter Elle Reeve before, during and after the events.
The documentary’s final scene shows Cantwell in a hotel room laying out all the weapons he was carrying on a bed.
Asked about the death of 32-year-old Heather Heyer, who was run down by a white supremacist sympathizer who has been charged with murder, Cantwell said the suspect had acted in self-defense.
“I think that a lot more people are going to die before we’re done here,” he told Reeve.
In another video clip that Cantwell posted after arrest warrants were issued for him, a more subdued Cantwell appeared to choke back tears at the prospect of being jailed.
An event designed to give Charlottesville residents a chance to talk with city officials about this month’s violent white nationalist rally has been rescheduled.
The city was supposed to host a “community recovery town hall” Thursday evening in collaboration with the Department of Justice.
But the city says in a statement that the town hall now will be held Sunday afternoon because of conflicts with student activities at the local high school. The city says officials will provide an update on “recovery efforts” and offer opportunities for public comment.
Contributing: Associated Press
