Sines v. Kessler, day 20

Each day, we’ll have the latest news from the courtroom in the Sines v. Kessler Unite the Right trial. For coverage from previous days, check the list of links at the bottom of this page.

The jury in Sines v. Kessler began deliberations Friday in the trial that seeks to hold two dozen organizers of the deadly 2017 Unite the Right rally responsible for conspiring to commit racially motivated violence.

One juror was excused because his two children were possibly exposed to COVID at their school and were told to quarantine. The juror is not vaccinated, said Judge Norman Moon, who assured other jurors the possible exposure occurred Thursday and they could safely deliberate. Eleven jurors remain, and a civil trial jury can proceed with six jurors.

Jurors received a 77-page document with jury instructions, the legal definitions of racially motivated conspiracy, and verdict forms. They asked if they could take the instructions home, which Moon does not recommend, but allowed.

The nine plaintiffs in the case say they were physically and emotionally injured when white nationalists came to Charlottesville in August 2017. Four of the plaintiffs were struck by James Fields’ Dodge Challenger when he plowed into a crowd of counterprotesters on Fourth Street, killing Heather Heyer. The plaintiffs say they incurred significant medical bills, lost wages, and continue to experience PTSD from the attack.

The defendants made no secret of their racist and anti-Semitic leanings, which their attorneys have acknowledged, but say their hate speech is protected under the First Amendment, and their violent rhetoric was just joking around. The defendants have also blamed the police, antifa, bandana-wearers, and some of the plaintiffs for the violence that occurred.

The complaint says the violence was no accident. Plaintiffs’ attorneys called 36 witnesses to the stand and have entered hundreds of Discord posts, texts, emails, and phone records that they say connected the defendants. The evidence shows how they openly talked about the fight for white supremacy they intended to take to the streets in Charlottesville.

Plaintiffs want $7-10 million for those Fields struck: Natalie Romero, Marcus Martin, Thomas Baker, and Chelsea Alvarado. They are asking the jury to award $3-5 million for the pain and suffering of Marissa Blair, who was with her friend Heyer when she was struck, then-UVA law student Elizabeth Sines, Reverend Seth Wispelwey, April Muniz, and then- UVA student Devin Willis, who was attacked during the August 11 tiki-torch march.

As for punitive damages, attorneys left that up to the jury. “What would it take to make sure the defendants and co-conspirators never, ever do anything like this again?” asked plaintiffs’ counsel Roberta Kaplan in closing arguments.

A civil trial verdict is determined by a “preponderance of evidence,” not the stricter “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard in criminal trials.

The court has already sanctioned defendants Vanguard America, National Socialist Movement, NSM leader Jeff Schoep, who said his phone fell in the toilet, Matthew Heimbach, who said his ex-wives deleted evidence, Elliott Kline, and Daily Stormer Robert “Azzmador” Ray for failing to comply with court orders to produce materials. The court has instructed the jury that Kline, who was jailed for contempt of court, and Ray, who has an arrest warrant and is on the lam, engaged in a conspiracy.

“Certain elements against some of the defendants have been proved,” said Moon. He also told jurors, “You are not partisans. You are judges—judges of the facts.”

The four-week trial was scheduled to end November 19. Jurors will resume deliberations at 9am Monday.

Previous Sines v. Kessler coverage

Pre-trial: Their day in court: Major lawsuit against Unite the Right neo-Nazis heads to trial

Day one, 10/25: Trial kicks off with jury selection

Day two, 10/26: Desperately seeking jury

Day three, 10/27: Jury selection wraps up

Day four, 10/28: Plaintiffs and defendants make their opening arguments

Day five, 10/29: “I hear it in my nightmares,” says plaintiff Romero

Day six, 11/1: “I stopped being an outgoing, sociable person,” says plaintiff Willis

Day seven, 11/2: “Strike that”

Day eight, 11/3: Defendants fawn over Hitler

Day nine, 11/4: Quibbling about hate