Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

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Crazedwraith
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Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Crazedwraith »

In contrast to the rittenhouse trial: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

The BBC wrote: Three white men accused of killing a black jogger, Ahmaud Arbery, last year have been found guilty of murder in a trial that has gripped the US.

Arbery, 25, was shot on 23 February 2020 in a confrontation with Travis and Gregory McMichael and their neighbour, William Bryan.

The defendants said they acted in self-defence during a citizen's arrest; prosecutors said race was a factor.

The men now face minimum sentences of life in prison.

A mainly white jury of 12 deliberated for about 10 hours before returning their verdict at around midday on Wednesday.

The trio were found guilty of murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal intent to commit a felony.

In February the three men will face another trial in a federal hate crimes case, alleging that they targeted Arbery because he was black.

How did Ahmaud Arbery die?
Arbery was out jogging in the afternoon on the outskirts of the coastal city of Brunswick in Georgia.

The elder McMichael, a neighbourhood resident, told police he believed Arbery resembled the suspect in a series of burglaries in the suburban community of Satilla Shores.

Police have said no reports were filed regarding these alleged break-ins, and no stolen property was found in Arbery's possession.

The McMichaels armed themselves with a pistol and a shotgun and pursued Arbery, who was unarmed, in a pickup truck through the neighbourhood. Bryan later joined the pursuit.

Three white men accused of killing a black jogger, Ahmaud Arbery, last year have been found guilty of murder in a trial that has gripped the US.

Arbery, 25, was shot on 23 February 2020 in a confrontation with Travis and Gregory McMichael and their neighbour, William Bryan.

The defendants said they acted in self-defence during a citizen's arrest; prosecutors said race was a factor.

The men now face minimum sentences of life in prison.

A mainly white jury of 12 deliberated for about 10 hours before returning their verdict at around midday on Wednesday.

The trio were found guilty of murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal intent to commit a felony.

In February the three men will face another trial in a federal hate crimes case, alleging that they targeted Arbery because he was black.

How did Ahmaud Arbery die?
Arbery was out jogging in the afternoon on the outskirts of the coastal city of Brunswick in Georgia.

The elder McMichael, a neighbourhood resident, told police he believed Arbery resembled the suspect in a series of burglaries in the suburban community of Satilla Shores.

Police have said no reports were filed regarding these alleged break-ins, and no stolen property was found in Arbery's possession.

The McMichaels armed themselves with a pistol and a shotgun and pursued Arbery, who was unarmed, in a pickup truck through the neighbourhood. Bryan later joined the pursuit.

The jury heard a 911 call in which the elder McMichael told an operator: "I'm out here in Satilla Shores. There's a black male running down the street."

The younger McMichael testified during the trial that he tried to talk to Arbery while the two were still in their truck and Arbery never responded.

He got out of the truck and fired his shotgun at Arbery during a struggle. Travis McMichael claimed self-defence, saying Arbery grabbed at his gun.

Three shots were fired.

A post-mortem examination showed Arbery had two gunshot wounds in his chest, and a gunshot graze wound on the inside of one of his wrists.

Gregory McMichael, 65, his son Travis, 35, and their neighbour William "Roddie" Bryan, 52, were arrested in May 2020.

Prosecutors alleged that Travis McMichael used a racial epithet and an expletive directed at Arbery as he lay on the ground. The men deny racism.

'We conquered the lynch mob'

Outside court on Wednesday, dozens of people cheered as the verdicts were read.

Arbery's father, Marcus Arbery, was seen crying and hugging supporters.

"He didn't do nothing," the father said, "but run and dream."

He also told reporters: "We conquered the lynch mob."

Arbery's mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, thanked the crowd and said she did not think she would see this day.

"It's been a long fight. It's been a hard fight. But God is good," she said. Of her son, she said: "He will now rest in peace."

Arbery was enrolled at a technical college to study become an electrician at the time of his death.

The Rev Al Sharpton, a civil rights figure and cable TV host, said outside court: "Let the word go forth all over the world, that a jury of 11 whites and one black in the Deep South stood up in a courtroom and said that black lives do matter."

After learning his fate, Travis McMichael turned as he stood to leave court and mouthed to his mother: "Love you."

Prosecutor Linda Dunikoski said: "The jury system works in this country, and when you present the truth to people and they see it, they will do the right thing."

Bryan's attorney, Kevin Gough, said his team was "disappointed with the verdict, but we respect it".

US President Joe Biden said the convictions showed that America's criminal justice system is "doing its job".

But he added that the killing was "a devastating reminder of how far we have to go in the fight for racial justice in this country".

What was the key footage?
Video was central to this case.

The first key piece of footage was a 36-second mobile phone clip showing Arbery's death.

That was filmed by William Bryan, who was in a vehicle following Arbery, and it surfaced publicly on 5 May 2020.

The clip shows Arbery trying to bypass a pickup truck ahead of him on the road and then struggling with Travis McMichael. There is muffled shouting and three gunshots are heard.

The elder McMichael is seen standing in the bed of the pickup as the pair struggle.

The clip sparked a nationwide outcry and was swiftly followed by criminal charges.

Five days later footage from a surveillance camera emerged, showing a black man in a white T-shirt - believed to be Arbery - at a home construction site shortly before the shooting.

He is seen walking on to the site and looking around for a few minutes before jogging down the street.

During the trial, the site's owner, Larry English Jr, testified that the man in question had not disturbed or damaged his property during the visit.

Mr English said cameras had spotted other people - including children and a white couple - trespassing on his property, but he never authorised the McMichaels to enter his property or confront anyone.

Jurors were also shown police bodycam footage from the aftermath of the shooting.
strangely enough self defense doesn't fly when you were the ones chasing a guy down and pointing guns at him.

I wonder if they will have any luck convicting on hate crimes. it seems a very dicey thing to prove beyond a reasonable doubt why they did something.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

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Actually, Hate crime should be very easy to get. There is no other motive, and their 'looks like a suspect' was already blown out of the water.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Raw Shark »

Solauren wrote: 2021-11-24 07:52pm Actually, Hate crime should be very easy to get. There is no other motive, and their 'looks like a suspect' was already blown out of the water.
Well, given that, "Prosecutors alleged that Travis McMichael used a racial epithet and an expletive directed at Arbery as he lay on the ground," and that the guy had a Confederate Flag bumper sticker... the only good news for them is, they should probably have an easy time joining the Aryan Brotherhood once they're inside.

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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by LadyTevar »

As this was Georgia, I was surprised they actually convicted them.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Rogue 9 »

Travis McMichael got up on the stand and testified that Mr. Arbery didn't threaten him. That blows self defense right out of the water right there. For the jury to do anything else would have been blatant.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Broomstick »

Crazedwraith wrote: 2021-11-24 06:23pm I wonder if they will have any luck convicting on hate crimes. it seems a very dicey thing to prove beyond a reasonable doubt why they did something.
I wonder if for the hate crimes trial they can throw in the defense lawyers bitching about "Black pastors" and going on about dirty toenails?

A key difference between Rittenhouse and Arbery is that Rittenhouse occurred during in a time and location of "civil unrest" and Arbery on a pleasant, peaceful afternoon.
LadyTevar wrote: 2021-11-24 09:54pm As this was Georgia, I was surprised they actually convicted them.
The Georgia of today is not the Georgia of 50 years ago. It's not perfect, but some aspects have improved.
Rogue 9 wrote: 2021-11-24 10:30pm Travis McMichael got up on the stand and testified that Mr. Arbery didn't threaten him. That blows self defense right out of the water right there. For the jury to do anything else would have been blatant.
And yeah, that was another key factor. One of the more dramatic real-life court room moments I've seen/heard.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Ralin »

Yay, the system worked?
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by LadyTevar »

Ralin wrote: 2021-11-25 05:09am Yay, the system worked?
Yay. The System Worked. 8)
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Broomstick »

The system working should be routine and expected, not something so rare that it is notable and seen as a reason to celebrate.

There is also the sentencing phase to get through. Until that's over and seen as just on some level we aren't quite done with this.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Solauren »

Broomstick wrote: 2021-11-26 03:58am The system working should be routine and expected, not something so rare that it is notable and seen as a reason to celebrate.
The system works all the time. If it didn't, we would hear about it more.

It's just high profile cases where it doesn't work that stick out.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by TimothyC »

Broomstick wrote: 2021-11-26 03:58am There is also the sentencing phase to get through. Until that's over and seen as just on some level we aren't quite done with this.
All three men got felony murder (a charge resulting from when someone dies in the commission of a felony, even if the person charged did not commit the action that ended the life of another) which comes with a life sentence, with a minimum of 30 years until parole (and if they are eligible for this or will be stick in jail for even longer is a part of sentencing). For Bryan (50) and the older McMichael (64) the possibility of getting parole is functionally academic. For the younger McMichael (34), it's less academic, but he's the one that got convicted of malice murder because he actually shot Mr. Arbery, but the state declined to make this a capital case.

There is also the aforementioned Federal Civil Rights trial (which has a range of possible sentencing outcomes from fines to the death penalty), and the now ex-DA who had slow-walked the case and had worked with the older McMichael has been charged with felony violation of her oath as a public officer, which if convicted brings with it a prison term of one to five years. She ran for re-election in 2020 and got ousted by an independent who had to collect thousands of signatures to even be on the ballot (no Democrat had gotten on the ballot for the primary election which was held in June of 2020, with deadlines for getting on that before the video came out showing the murder).

I think in this case it's also important to remember STFU Friday, as the only reason that the case wasn't left under the rug is that the video of the murder was taken by Bryan, and released to the media by a lawyer who had been talking to the three men.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Broomstick »

Solauren wrote: 2021-11-26 07:40am
Broomstick wrote: 2021-11-26 03:58am The system working should be routine and expected, not something so rare that it is notable and seen as a reason to celebrate.
The system works all the time. If it didn't, we would hear about it more.

It's just high profile cases where it doesn't work that stick out.
My study of American history in regards to White people killing Black people (or Native, or Asian, or...) leads me to a different conclusions than yours. Especially cases in the Deep South, like Georgia.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by loomer »

Solauren wrote: 2021-11-26 07:40am
Broomstick wrote: 2021-11-26 03:58am The system working should be routine and expected, not something so rare that it is notable and seen as a reason to celebrate.
The system works all the time. If it didn't, we would hear about it more.

It's just high profile cases where it doesn't work that stick out.
[Citation Needed]
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Straha »

loomer wrote: 2021-11-26 10:30pm
Solauren wrote: 2021-11-26 07:40am
Broomstick wrote: 2021-11-26 03:58am The system working should be routine and expected, not something so rare that it is notable and seen as a reason to celebrate.
The system works all the time. If it didn't, we would hear about it more.

It's just high profile cases where it doesn't work that stick out.
[Citation Needed]
If we don't hear about it the system is doing its job of keeping the unfortunate nature of the prison-industrial complex very quiet. Ergo, the system is working. QED.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Solauren »

Broomstick wrote: 2021-11-26 02:19pm
Solauren wrote: 2021-11-26 07:40am
Broomstick wrote: 2021-11-26 03:58am The system working should be routine and expected, not something so rare that it is notable and seen as a reason to celebrate.
The system works all the time. If it didn't, we would hear about it more.

It's just high profile cases where it doesn't work that stick out.
My study of American history in regards to White people killing Black people (or Native, or Asian, or...) leads me to a different conclusions than yours. Especially cases in the Deep South, like Georgia.
I was thinking more 'last 20 years with the internet' then pre-internet.

It was WAY easier to pull something off when the coverage was local only.
I've been asked why I still follow a few of the people I know on Facebook with 'interesting political habits and view points'.

It's so when they comment on or approve of something, I know what pages to block/what not to vote for.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Darth Yan »

Solauren wrote: 2021-11-30 06:54pm
Broomstick wrote: 2021-11-26 02:19pm
Solauren wrote: 2021-11-26 07:40am
The system works all the time. If it didn't, we would hear about it more.

It's just high profile cases where it doesn't work that stick out.
My study of American history in regards to White people killing Black people (or Native, or Asian, or...) leads me to a different conclusions than yours. Especially cases in the Deep South, like Georgia.
I was thinking more 'last 20 years with the internet' then pre-internet.

It was WAY easier to pull something off when the coverage was local only.
No the system is indeed broken. Even in the last 20 years there have been a lot of blatant miscarriages when killers got off despite evidence being against them.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by loomer »

Solauren wrote: 2021-11-30 06:54pm
Broomstick wrote: 2021-11-26 02:19pm
Solauren wrote: 2021-11-26 07:40am
The system works all the time. If it didn't, we would hear about it more.

It's just high profile cases where it doesn't work that stick out.
My study of American history in regards to White people killing Black people (or Native, or Asian, or...) leads me to a different conclusions than yours. Especially cases in the Deep South, like Georgia.
I was thinking more 'last 20 years with the internet' then pre-internet.

It was WAY easier to pull something off when the coverage was local only.
Respectfully, Solauren, this is wrong. The vast majority of cases still receive only local coverage, if any at all, and the disproportionate conviction and sentencing rates are still a real problem. It's why I gave you the flippant [Citation Needed] treatment.

This kind of blindspot is actually one of the dangers of the information age. Because so much is at our fingertips, we can develop a tendency to assume if we don't hear about something, it isn't happening - but the information that actually reaches us consistently presents nothing close to the full picture.
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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Broomstick »

Yep. If you want to know actual facts you, personally, need to do some researching.
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Now I did a job. I got nothing but trouble since I did it, not to mention more than a few unkind words as regard to my character so let me make this abundantly clear. I do the job. And then I get paid.- Malcolm Reynolds, Captain of Serenity, which sums up my feelings regarding the lawsuit discussed here.

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Re: Ahmaud Arbery: Three US men guilty of murdering black jogger

Post by Solauren »

Ah! I see, and agree, with your point.
I've been asked why I still follow a few of the people I know on Facebook with 'interesting political habits and view points'.

It's so when they comment on or approve of something, I know what pages to block/what not to vote for.
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