Man convicted in Charlottesville attack asks for “mercy”

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A man convicted in a deadly car attack on a crowd of counterprotesters at a white nationalist rally in Virginia is asking a federal court for mercy and a punishment shorter than a life sentence.
Attorneys for James Alex Fields Jr. said in a sentencing memo Friday that he does not deserve to spend the rest of his life in prison because of his young age, traumatic childhood and mental illness.
Fields, 22, has previously pleaded guilty to 29 federal charges stemming from