The long, hot summer of 2017 included the white nationalist rally in Charlottesville and its deadly outcome, in which a driver allegedly drove his car into a crowd of counter-protestors, killing one.

Last week, U.S. Attorney Thomas Cullen announced the indictment of the driver on federal hate crime charges. These are placed in addition to state charges that include murder.

Good. This is an unambiguous message from the United States Department of Justice, Cullen said, of “severe consequences” for engaging in “racially motivated violence.”

“Last summer’s violence in Charlottesville cut short a promising young life and shocked the nation,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a news release. His statement from the top is a welcome underlining of the indictment’s importance. “Today’s indictment should send a clear message to every would-be criminal in America that we aggressively prosecute violent crimes of hate that threaten...