A failure to properly police an event, or something more sinister?

A question regarding the policing that occurred in Charlottesville. The following statements are taken from an August 12th article in the Huffington Post:

There was nothing haphazard about the violence that erupted today in this bucolic town in Virginia’s heartland.

Standing nearby, an assortment of Virginia State Police troopers and Charlottesville police wearing protective gear watched silently from behind an array of metal barricades — and did nothing.

The police did little to stop the bloodshed. Several times, a group of assault-rifle-toting militia members from New York State, wearing body armor and desert camo, played a more active role in breaking up fights.
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I keep hearing rumblings that not only did the police not keep the protesters on the two sides from engaging with each other, they actually funnelled them into the same space, making a violent confrontation almost inevitable. Anyone hearing similar reports? Are the police responsible for much of the problem that occurred in Charlottesville?

A group's right to protest does not imply a right to meet up with people who oppose their views. The police could very easily have kept the KKK / Nazi folks away from the anti- KKK / Nazi folks. Why didn't they do this?

Thoughts?