An organizer of the deadly 2017 “Unite the Right” rally attended by white nationalists in Charlottesville, Virginia, was found in civil contempt Monday by a federal court judge.
Elliott Kline, also known as Eli Mosley, was found in civil contempt for failing to turn over evidence sought by lawyers suing him over his role planning the notorious event.
He was given until December 2 to comply with a court-authorized request to give the lawyers his cellphones and internet account credentials, local news outlets reported following a hearing held in Charlottesville federal court.
U.S. District Judge Norman K. Moon ordered Mr. Kline to be fined $200 each day that he does not comply with the discovery requests, Charlottesville’s CBS 19 News reported. Judge Moon also left open the possiblity of putting Mr. Kline behind bars, Richmond’s VPM public radio reported.
A status hearing has been set for December 16, according to the case docket.
Mr. Kline was found in contempt in connection with a civil suit filed on behalf of several Charlottesville residents against a number of individuals and organizations involved in “Unite the Right,” which infamously descended into chaos amid fights breaking out between participants and counterprotesters and culminated in the deaths of three people.
Plaintiffs in the case, Sines v. Kessler, allege defendants conspired to commit violence and intimidation in violation of federal civil rights laws.
Integrity First for America, a nonprofit organization leading the lawsuit, had asked the court to consider sanctioning Mr. Kline for not complying with discovery orders requiring him to turn over related evidence, including phones and the credentials to internet accounts he used leading up to the rally.
“Sanctions like these send a clear message that there will be real financial penalties—and even arrest — for flagrantly flouting court orders,” reacted Amy Spitalnick, the organization’s executive director.
Mr. Kline represented himself at the hearing, CBS 19 reported. He could not immediately be reached for comment.
“Unite the Right” was planned by a local white nationalist activist in response to Charlottesville planning to remove Confederate monuments from the city. It attracted participants including members of neo-Nazi and similar groups as well as counterprotesters.
Heather Heyer, a Charlottesville paralegal and anti-racist activist, was killed on the afternoon of “Unite the Right” after a participant, James Alex Fields Jr., drove his car into a crowd of people who were protesting the rally. Two law enforcement officers also died in a helicopter crash while monitoring the event.
Fields has since been found guilty of federal hate crimes and first-degree murder and is serving life in prison.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.