A black man who was severely beaten during a violent white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, and then initially charged with felony unlawful wounding stemming from the same incident has been found not guilty of any charge.
Photos and videos of an attack in a parking garage on August 12 that left DeAndre Harris with serious injuries were widely shared online.
Harold Crews, who The Los Angeles Times called a white supremacist, pressed charges against Harris for an alleged assault, following the attack caught on camera.
A Charlottesville judge said on Friday that it was clear that Harris didn’t intend to harm Crews, finding him not guilty of the amended charge of misdemeanor assault.
DailyMail.com was not able to reach the Charlottesville Commonwealth’s Attorney for comment on the decision to move forward with prosecuting the case against Harris.
WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES
DeAndre Harris, who was caught on camera being severely beaten (shown) during a violent white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, has been found not guilty of a charge filed against him stemming from the same incident
Crews is the chairman of the North Carolina chapter of the League of the South.
Southern Poverty Law Center described that group as ‘a neo-Confederate group that advocates for a second Southern secession and a society dominated by “European Americans.”‘
The organization added: ‘The league believes the “godly” nation it wants to form should be run by an “Anglo-Celtic” (read: white) elite.’
Harris, who turned himself in after the felony charge was filed against him, wrote that he was ‘brutally attacked by white supremacists in the parking garage right beside the Charlottesville Police Station,’ on a GoFundMe page created the day after he was attacked to help cover his medical bills.
DeAndre Harris (pictured), who turned himself in after the felony charge was filed against him, wrote that he was ‘brutally attacked by white supremacists in the parking garage right beside the Charlottesville Police Station’ on a GoFundMe page created to cover his medical bills
Harold Crews (pictured), who filed the charge against Harris, is the chairman of the North Carolina chapter of the League of the South. Southern Poverty Law Center described that group as ‘a neo-Confederate group that advocates for a second Southern secession and a society dominated by “European Americans”‘
Harris described the attack he endured in his own words, as follows:
‘I was chased and beat with metal poles. I was knocked unconscious repeatedly. Every time I went to stand up I was knocked back down. If it was not for my friends that I came with [me], I would have been beaten to a pulp.
‘No law enforcement stepped in to help me. Once I was dragged off to some nearby steps I was taken to the designated area for injured protesters & counter-protesters. My injuries were too extensive to be treated at the scene so I was taken to the ER at Martha Jefferson Hospital.
‘I was diagnosed with a concussion, an ulnar fracture, and had to receive eight staples in my head. I also have a laceration across my right eyebrow, abrasions on my knees & elbows, and a chipped tooth.’
The case against Harris was later amended to a misdemeanor charge of assault, before a judge in the General District Court of Charlottesville found him not guilty on Friday.
The attack on Harris occurred at the Unite the Right rally in Virginia on August 12.
This photo of Harris was provided by the Charlottesville Police Department
A car driven into a crowd of protesters in Charlottesville on August 12 killed Heather Heyer
The silver Dodge Charger allegedly driven by James Alex Fields Jr passes near the Market Street Parking Garage moments after driving into a crowd of counter-protesters on Water Street on August 12 in Charlottesville
Hundreds of white supremacists gathered in Charlottesville on that day to protest the removal of a statue of Confederate General Robert E Lee.
Harris attended to demonstrate against the white nationalists, along with many others, including a woman named Heather Heyer.
Heyer, 32, was killed and 19 others were injured by a car that was driven into a crowd of counter-protesters. James Alex Fields Jr of Ohio was arrested as the suspect accused of driving the car.
Nearby the site of the rally, additional white supremacists carried lit torches are shouted racist slogans at the University of Virginia campus.
Nearby the site of the rally, additional white supremacists carried lit torches are shouted racist slogans at the University of Virginia campus; Peter Cvjetanovic (right) is seen here with white supremacists at the base of a statue of Thomas Jefferson after marching through the University of Virginia campus on August 11
Brynn Cook, right joins other protesters outside the courthouse before the trial of DeAndre Harris at the Charlottesville District Court on Friday in Virginia
Around 100 people came to the courthouse to show their support for Harris, according to The Daily Progress.
DailyMail.com reached out to the Charlottesville Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office to inquire as to why the office chose to take this case to trial.
A phone call was directed to the voicemail of Commonwealth Attorney Joseph Platania.
DailyMail.com left a voice message that was not immediately returned.
Crews could not be reached immediately for comment.
Crews could not immediately be reached for comment by DailyMail.com