Travis McMichael, his father Gregory McMichael, and William "Roddie" Bryan Jr., were found guilty of federal hate crimes charges on Tuesday in the murder of Ahmaud Arbery.
The verdict could lead to additional life sentences for the McMichaels and Bryan.
The three men, who are white, were convicted of murder in the February 2020 killing of Arbery, who was black. Travis and Gregory McMichael were sentenced to life in prison in January without possibility of parole, while Bryan was sentenced to life with possibility of parole.
The McMichaels were first indicted in May 2020, after lawyers for Arbery’s family released cell phone footage of the incident filmed by Bryan. Bryan, who joined the McMichaels in pursuit and of Arbery, was indicted a short time later.
The footage showed Arbery attempting to jog around Bryan’s pickup truck, while the McMichaels began an altercation with Arbery. A short time later, Travis McMichael shot Arbery, who could be seen falling to the ground in the video.
The McMichaels and Bryan claimed that they pursued Arbery thinking that he was a burglar, citing Georgia’s citizens’ arrest law in their defense. However, the prosecution countered that the men’s actions were not covered under the citizens’ arrest law because they had no indication Arbery committed a crime on the day of the shooting, indicating a lack of probable cause.
Comments
Post a Comment