Ahmaud Arbery’s Murderers Convicted in Hate Crimes Trial

In addition to being convicted for Ahmaud Arbery’s murder, Travis McMichael, his father Gregory McMichael, and their neighbor William “Roddie” Bryan have also been found guilty for depriving the 25-year-old Black man of his right to use a public street because of the color of his skin.

On Tuesday, a jury — consisting of eight white people, three Black people, and one Hispanic person — convicted the three men of federal hate crimes for the February 2020 incident in Brunswick, Georgia, in which, allegedly, Travis fired three shots from a shotgun at Ahmaud, while Gregory watched and William filmed.

Additionally, the three men were each found guilty of attempted kidnapping, while the McMichaels were found guilty of one count each of brandishing or discharging a firearm during a violent crime.

After receiving the case on Monday, the jury adjourned for the night after about three hours of deliberations, and then deliberated for about an hour on Tuesday morning before announcing they had reached a verdict.

In addition to the life sentences they received earlier this year in state court after being convicted of Ahmaud’s murder, with only William eligible for parole, the three men now face up to life in prison for the federal crimes.

As reported by The Associated Press, Ahmaud’s father, Marcus Arbery Sr., bowed his head and shook his fists as the guilty verdicts were read in the courtroom.

Marcus and Ahmaud’s mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, were also seen holding hands with their attorney Ben Crump outside of the courthouse as they received applause from supporters.

“Ahmaud will continue to rest in peace. But he will now begin to rest in power,” Wanda said, adding, “We as a family will never get victory because Ahmaud is gone forever.”

Marcus continued, “Ahmaud was a kid you can’t replace, because of the heart he had… I’m struggling with that every day. It hurts me every day.”

During the trial, prosecutors showed about two dozen alleged text messages and social media posts in which Travis and William used racist slurs and made derogatory comments about Black people.

In response to a Facebook video of a Black man playing a prank on a white person, Travis allegedly wrote in 2018, “I’d kill that -------- ------.”

Additionally, a woman who served under Travis in the U.S. Coast Guard a decade ago said he allegedly called her a “------ lover,” after learning she had dated a Black man.

However, the FBI wasn’t able to access Gregory’s phone because it was encrypted.

On the other hand, defense attorneys argued that the McMichaels and William did not chase and kill Ahmaud because of his race but acted on the suspicion that Ahmaud had committed crimes in their neighborhood.

However, in June of last year, an investigator testified in state court that he found no evidence that Ahmaud stole anything from a construction site he walked through before he was shot and killed.

Last year, Travis was convicted on one count of malice murder, which alleges intent to kill; four counts of felony murder, which alleges an action that causes a death; two counts of aggravated assault; one count of false imprisonment; and one count of criminal attempt to commit a felony.

Gregory was cleared of the malice murder charge but was found guilty of all the others. William was cleared of malice murder and one felony murder charge, as well as one of the aggravated assault charges. However, William was found liable for all the other charges.

All three men are currently serving time in a Georgia state prison and will be sentenced on the federal charges at a later date.

Back in October 2020, legal commentator and television journalist Nancy Grace appeared on our show and explained why the deadly force against Ahmaud was not justified. Watch, below: