Organizer of Charlottesville white nationalist rally says driver who plowed through counter-protesters 'did the wrong thing'

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — The organizer of a rally that drew hundreds of white nationalists and other extremists to Charlottesville says he disavows the violence that eroded it.

Jason Kessler said in an interview Saturday evening that whoever drove a car into a group of counter-protesters "did the wrong thing." He said he was saddened that people were hurt.

Kessler is a local blogger and activist who described the event as a pro-white rally. He planned it to protest the city's decision to remove a Confederate monument.

He also criticized law enforcement's response to the event, which was dispersed before speakers could take the stage.

He said they did a poor job controlling the chaos to allow free speech.