Ahmaud Arbery's mother said on Wednesday night that she is 'thankful' for justice after all three defendants were found guilty of murdering her son in February 2020.
Gunman Travis McMichael was found guilty on the charge of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal attempt to commit a felony.
His father, Gregory McMichael, was found guilty of felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal attempt to commit a felony.
Neighbor William 'Roddie' Bryan was found guilty of felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal attempt to commit a felony.
Arbrey's mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, sobbed aloud as the first verdict was read, putting her head to her chest as she wept, while civil rights activist the Rev. Al Sharpton gripped her hand.
On Wednesday night, Cooper-Jones said she was relieved at the verdict.
'This is the second Thanksgiving without Ahmaud,' she told CNN.
'But at the same time, the first with justice for Ahmaud.
'So I take tomorrow as a very thankful day, and I give all praises to God.'
On the day of Arbery's killing, Gregory, 65, and Travis, 35, grabbed guns and jumped in a pickup truck to pursue 25-year-old Ahmaud after seeing him running in the coastal suburb of Satilla Shores on February 23, 2020 - as they claimed to believe he was responsible for break-ins in their neighborhood.
Neighbor Bryan, 52, joined the pursuit in his own pickup and recorded cellphone video of Travis McMichael fatally shooting Arbery.
On Wednesday evening, the family was seen raising a glass in a private home to Arbery, and to finally getting justice.
Ahmaud Arbery's mother (pictured right, celebrating yesterday after the guilty verdicts were delivered) said yesterday night that she is 'thankful' for justice after all three defendants were found guilty of murdering her son (left) in February 2020
Family and friends of Ahmaud Arbrey are seen on Wednesday raising a toast to the 25-year-old at a residence on St Simon's Island, Georgia
Arbery's mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, is hugged by a supporter after the jury convicted Travis McMichael of murder
Pictured: Travis McMichael (left), his father Gregory McMichael (center) and their neighbor William Bryan Jr (right)
Cooper-Jones said she hoped the verdict would encourage other parents whose children had been murdered to keep fighting for justice.
'I often think of mothers like Breonna Taylor's mom, Tamika Palmer,' said Cooper-Jones.
'We have Atatiana Jefferson over in Dallas, Texas - she's getting ready to go to trial.
'But a lot of these families don't get justice.
'And my message to them is: don't give up. Keep pushing, keep fighting.'
Cooper-Jones said that the family waited a long time for justice, noting that the authorities only arrested the McMichaels and Bryan after video footage emerged.
She said it was 'huge' to have her son's killers finally convicted.
'My prayers have been answered,' she said.
'Early in the case, in 2020, we were 74 days without an arrest.
'We finally was able to go through a lengthy trial and get justice for Ahmaud.
'Today was a good day.
'To hear that the accused were actually found guilty was huge.
'We finally got the justice for Ahmaud that he deserved back in 2020.'
Asked what she wanted people to know about her son, she replied: 'Ahmaud was love.
'Ahmaud was a kind young man, and he definitely did not deserve to lose his life in the way he did.'
As McMichael's first guilty verdict was read out, Arbery's father, Marcus Arbery, yelled out 'Woohoo!,' briefly delaying the reading of the other verdicts as he was removed from the courtroom.
McMichael's attorney, Jason Sheffield, said he is planning to appeal the guilty verdict, adding that this is a very hard day for Travis and his father, Gregory McMichael, who was also convicted of murder.
'I can tell you honestly, these men are sorry for what happened to Ahmaud Arbery,' said Sheffield.
'They are sorry he's dead. They are sorry for the tragedy that happened because of the choices they made to go out there and try to stop him.'
The conviction carries a minimum sentence of life in prison. It is up to the judge to decide whether that comes with or without the possibility of parole, and he has not set a date for sentencing.
Neighbor William 'Roddie' Bryan was found guilty of felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal attempt to commit a felony.
He was found not guilty of malice murder and one count each of felony murder and aggravated assault.
Cooper-Jones is seen outside the court, addressing the media on Wednesday
Cooper-Jones is pictured with Rev Al Sharpton outside court on Wednesday, as the three men who killed her son were convicted
Cooper-Jones is seen with Al Sharpton and civil rights lawyer Ben Crump (far left) outside the court
In the video recorded by Bryan, Arbery can purportedly be seen trying to wrestle a shotgun from Travis McMichael's hands
After failing to wrestle the gun away, Arbery can purportedly be seen stumbling away down the road after having been shot
Gunman Travis McMichael (pictured Wednesday with his attorney) was found guilty on the charge of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal attempt to commit a felony
Gregory McMichael (left, pictured Wednesday with his attorneys) was found guilty of felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal attempt to commit a felony. He was found not guilty of malice murder. Neighbor William 'Roddie' Bryan (right, pictured in court Wednesday) was found guilty of felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal attempt to commit a felony. He was found not guilty of malice murder and one count each of felony murder and aggravated assault
Bryan's attorney, Kevin Gough, said he was planning to file a motion for a new trial next week for his client.
'It's been a long fight, it's been a hard fight, but God is good,' Cooper-Jones told reporters outside the courthouse.
'To tell you the truth I never saw this day back in 2020. I never thought this day would come but God is good. I just wanted to tell everybody thank you, thank you, for those who marched, those who prayed. Thank you God.
Adopting her son's nickname since boyhood, she added: 'You know him as Ahmaud, I know him as Quez, he will now rest in peace. '
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing Marcus Arbery in a civil proceeding, said in a statement to DailyMail.com: 'Guilty. Guilty. Guilty. After nearly two years of pain, suffering, and wondering if Ahmaud's killers would be held to account, the Arbery family finally has some justice.
'Nothing will bring back Ahmaud, but his family will have some peace knowing the men who killed him will remain behind bars and can never inflict their brand of evil on another innocent soul. While today is not one for celebration, it is one for reflection.'
Travis McMichael, looking red-faced, turned to leave the courtroom and mouthed 'love you' to his mother, Leigh.
'I'm floored, floored with a capital 'F,'' Laura Hogue, one of Gregory McMichael's lawyers, said in the courtroom.
Cooper-Jones is seen holding her granddaughter, Aubrey Nicholson, during Wednesday night's quiet celebration
'This is a very difficult day for Travis McMichael and Greg McMichael,' Sheffield echoed. 'These are two men who honestly believed that what they were doing was the right thing to do. However, a Glynn County jury has spoken. They have found them guilty. They will be sentenced.'
'That is a very disappointing and sad verdict for myself and for Bob and for our team, but we also recognize that this is a day of celebration for the Arbery family. We cannot tear our eyes away from the way they feel about this. They feel they have gotten justice today. We respect that. We honor that. Because we honor this jury trial system.'
Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley, who presided over the trial for their state charges, has not yet set a sentencing date for the three men.
The men face minimum sentences of life in prison. It is up to the judge to decide whether that comes with or without the possibility of parole.
The three men have also been indicted on separate federal hate crime charges, including interference with rights and attempted kidnapping. The McMichaels were also charged with using, carrying, brandishing and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. All three men pleaded not guilty.
The federal trial is set to take place in February. If convicted, they could each face an additional penalty of up to life in prison. Since the defendants were being held on state charges, a federal bond hearing has not been set.
Arbery's family and supporters are shown holding hands as they exit the courthouse (Pictured Wanda Cooper-Jones, Arbery's mother, Reverend Al Sharpton, Arbery's father, Marcus Arbery, and attorney Ben Crump)
Travis McMichael was pictured handcuffed and being escorted out of the courthouse after he was found guilty on charges of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal attempt to commit a felony
After the verdicts were read out, Arbery's family watched the verdicts from an overflow room beside the court, saying they 'finally have some justice'. They clapped and cried out as jurors returned their verdicts before the trio were remanded in custody ahead of sentencing.
Yvon Arbery, 57, the deceased's aunt told DailyMail.com: 'It's just so much joy. I feel so much satisfaction, thank you God. This is going to bring big change to Brunswick, Georgia and the rest of the country. It will show everybody know that you cannot have this hatred in your heart and you cannot get away with this anymore.'
Marcus Arbery said he hoped the verdict would prove a healing moment for a bitterly divided America.
'Ya'll pulled together and worked this thing. That's what it's all about. We conquered that lynch mob,' he told the crowd, to cheers and applause.
He added: 'For real all lives matter, not just blacks. We don't want to see nobody go through this. I don't want to see no daddy watch their kid get shot down like that day.
'It's all our problem. Let's keep fighting. Let's keep doing it and making this place a better place for all human beings. Love everybody. All human beings need to be treated equally. Today is a good day.'
Outside the courthouse, a crowd of more than 100 people huddled around a loudspeaker in hushed silence to hear proceedings over a livestream.
A huge roar erupted as each guilty verdict rang out, with bystanders raising their fists in solidarity with the dead black man.
'Say his name! Enough is enough! Ahmaud Arbery!' the crowd chanted.
After the verdicts were read they continued: 'We got justice!'
Others waved aloft Black Lives Matters flags and hugged one another in celebration, relieved and jubilant that jurors had decided the racially-charged case in the Arbery family's favor.
Leah Baker, 52, a Brunswick resident, said: 'I'm so thankful, I'm grateful - this is most definitely the right verdict.
'Because of the legacy of slavery, of history, of the Trayvon Martin case, I was worried they would create enough doubt with the self defense thing. We are a small city and we have made nationwide history in the cause of black people and equality.'
Arbery was a former high school football star who was working at a truck washing company and at his his father's landscaping business. He planned to go back to college, according to his family, before he was followed shot to death last year.
He was 25 at the time of his death and was on probation for minor previous incidents, but he was mostly remembered as a charismatic and kind person with an easy smile and infectious laughter by those who knew him.
'Some students it's hard to get mad at,' said his former high school football coach Jason Vaughn, 'because you love them so much.'
Arbery was enrolled at South Georgia Technical College for about a year-and-a-half after high school, but he dropped out due to financial difficulties, according to Reuters.
He was hoping to follow in his uncles' footsteps and become an electrician.
He had plans to go back to college before he was killed, his family said.
On the day of Arbery's killing, father and son Gregory, 65, and Travis McMichael, 35, grabbed guns and jumped in a pickup truck to pursue the 25-year-old black jogger after seeing him running in the coastal suburb of Satilla Shores on February 23, 2020.
Their neighbor William 'Roddie' Bryan, 52, joined the pursuit in his own pickup and recorded cellphone video of Travis McMichael fatally shooting Arbery.
Leah Baker, 52, a Brunswick resident, said: 'I'm so thankful, I'm grateful - this is most definitely the right verdict.
'Because of the legacy of slavery, of history, of the Trayvon Martin case, I was worried they would create enough doubt with the self defense thing. We are a small city and we have made nationwide history in the cause of black people and equality.'
'This case, by all accounts, should have been opened and closed...the violent stalking and lynching of Ahmaud Arbery was documented on video for the world to witness. But yet, because of the deep cracks, flaws, and biases in our systems, we were left to wonder if we would ever see justice,' said Crump.
'Today certainly indicates progress, but we are nowhere close to the finish line. America, you raised your voices for Ahmaud. Now is not the time to let them quiet. Keep marching. Keep fighting for what is right. And never stop running for Ahmaud.'
Arbery was shot dead on February 23, 2020. The former high school football star was working at his father's business and getting ready to go back to technical school, his family says
President Joe Biden also issued a statement following the verdicts, saying Arbery's killing was a 'devastating reminder of how far we have to go in the fight for racial justice' in America.
'Mr. Arbery should be here today, celebrating the holidays with his mother, Wanda Cooper Jones, and his father, Marcus Arbery. Nothing can bring Mr. Arbery back to his family and to his community, but the verdict ensures that those who committed this horrible crime will be punished,' Biden said.
'While the guilty verdicts reflect our justice system doing its job, that alone is not enough. Instead, we must recommit ourselves to building a future of unity and shared strength, where no one fears violence because of the color of their skin.
'My administration will continue to do the hard work to ensure that equal justice under law is not just a phrase emblazoned in stone above the Supreme Court, but a reality for all Americans.'
Similarly, Vice President Kamala Harris said that although the three defendants were found guilty, 'we feel the weight of grief.'
'Ahmaud Arbery should be alive, and nothing can take away the pain that his mother Wanda Cooper-Jones, his father Marcus Arbery, and the entire Arbery family and community feel today. I share in that pain,' she said.
'These verdicts send an important message, but the fact remains that we still have work to do. The defense counsel chose to set a tone that cast the attendance of ministers at the trial as intimidation and dehumanized a young Black man with racist tropes.
'The jury arrived at its verdicts despite these tactics. Ahmaud Arbery was a son. He was a brother. He was a friend. His life had meaning. We will not forget him. We honor him best by continuing the fight for justice.'
Ahmaud Arbery's father Marcus Arbery, center, his hugged by Ben Crump after the jury convicted Travis McMichael
Reverend Al Sharpton and Wanda Cooper-Jones, mother of Ahmaud Arbery, raise their hands outside the Glynn County Courthouse. The family says they now 'finally have some justice'
William 'Roddie' Bryan was escorted out of the courthouse Wednesday in handcuffs after being found guilty of murder by a Georgia jury
Travis McMichael was shown leaving the courthouse after the trial. He turned and mouthed 'love you' to his mother, Leigh, before he was taken out of the courtroom
Outside the Georgia courthouse, demonstrators were seen cheering, crying and celebrating the verdict
Protestors, civil rights leaders and pastors from across the nation have assembled in Glynn County throughout the duration of the trial, pushing for justice for Arbery and offering support to his family
People react after the jury reached a guilty verdict in the trial of William 'Roddie' Bryan, Travis McMichael and Gregory McMichael
Gregory McMichael was escorted out of court in handcuffs. A sentencing date for the three men convicted of Ahmaud Arbery's murder has not yet been set
Rev. Al Sharpton arrived at the Glynn County Courthouse on Wednesday with Ahmaud Arbery's parents, Wanda Cooper-Jones (Left) and Marcus Arbery (Right). The civil rights leader held Cooper-Jones' hand in court while she put her head to her chest and wept as the guilty verdict was read
After being sworn in more than two weeks ago, the disproportionately white jury heard from more than two dozen witnesses - including gunman Travis McMichael, the only defendant to take the witness stand - and was presented with evidence photos, police body camera video, autopsy reports and more.
The McMichaels told police they suspected Arbery was a fleeing burglar when they armed themselves and jumped in a pickup truck to chase him.
Bryan joined the pursuit when they passed his house and recorded cellphone video of Travis McMichael blasting Arbery at close range with a shotgun as Arbery threw punches and grabbed for the weapon.
During the trial, the prosecution aimed to prove the defendants wrongly assumed the worst about Arbery and sought to rebut arguments that they were attempting a valid citizen's arrest, which required that someone have 'reasonable and probable' suspicion that a person is fleeing a serious crime they committed.
'They made their decision to attack Ahmaud Arbery in their driveways because he was a black man running down the street,' Prosecutor Linda Dunikoski said during her closing arguments.
They killed him 'not because he's a threat to them, but because he wouldn't stop and talk to them,' she alleged.
The state claimed there was no evidence Arbery had committed crimes in the defendants' neighborhood.
Defense attorneys contend the McMichaels were attempting a legal citizen's arrest when they set off after Arbery, seeking to detain and question him as a suspected burglar after he was seen running from a nearby home under construction.
Travis McMichael testified that he shot Arbery in self-defense, saying the running man turned and attacked with his fists while running past the idling truck where Travis McMichael stood with his shotgun.
Defense attorney, Jason Sheffield, said his client had 'reasonable and probable grounds of suspicion' to follow the 25-year-old in his truck because he believed he was a burglar.
He added that although Arbery was not armed with a weapon, Travis McMichael said he had reached into his shirt as if for a weapon, and he was also armed with his fists.
'Travis felt something is not right...Aggravated assault is a felony that can be committed by the use of fists. Fists are a weapon. And right now as Ahmaud Arbery is running towards Travis McMichael he could have a gun and he definitely has fists,' Sheffield said.
On a 911 call the jury reviewed on day two of deliberations, Gregory McMichael told an operator: 'I'm out here in Satilla Shores. There's a black male running down the street.'
He then starts shouting, apparently as Arbery is running toward the McMichael's idling truck with Bryan's truck coming up behind him: 'Stop right there! Damn it, stop! Travis!'
Gunshots can be heard a few second later.
Arbery's killing became part of a larger national reckoning on racial injustice after the graphic video of his death leaked online two months later and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation took over the case, quickly arresting the three men. Each of them is charged with murder and other crimes.
A nearly all-white jury was selected, and one of the defense lawyers - Kevin Gough - repeatedly, but unsuccessfully, sought the removal of black pastors and civil rights leaders including the Rev. Jesse Jackson from the courtroom.
Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley said he was required to accept the 'race-neutral' reasons defense lawyers gave for the removal of all but one potential black juror.
Black activists said it showed again how the justice system was skewed against black Americans.
Three white men were convicted of murder on Wednesday for chasing and shooting Ahmaud Arbery as he ran in their Georgia neighborhood last year. The jury rejected their self-defense claim
Prosecutor Linda Dunikosk was photographed next to attorney Ben Crumps and prosecutor Larissa Ollivierre after the jury reached a guilty verdict for all three defendants in Ahmaud Arbery's murder trial
All large crowd is shown cheering after they learn all three men charged in Ahmaud Arbery's murder had been convicted
Ben Crump is pictured with other civil rights leaders outside the Glynn County courthouse after the jury announced a guilty verdict for all three men charged in Ahmaud Arbery's murder
Protestors waved flags outside of the Glynn County courthouse
Earlier Wednesday, the jury in the trial of three white men accused of murdering Arbery started their second day of deliberations by requesting the video of the killing and 911 call, as civil rights lawyer said outside that the black unarmed jogger was chased down and murdered like a 'runaway slave'.
The jury foreperson told Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley the panel - composed of 11 white and one black person - wanted to view the shooting video and hear the call accused Gregory McMichael made to 911 on February 23, 2020.
'We, the jury, request to see the following videos three times each: One, the original video, the short version. Two, the enhanced high contrast version. We would also like to listen to the 911 call on to 2/23 made by Greg McMichael,' the foreperson.
The court then proceeded to play the videos thrice, as well as the 911 call.
As the jury deliberated, protestors assembled outside the Glynn County Courthouse demanding justice for the slain 25-year-old.
Wanda Cooper-Jones, arrived at court accompanied by high profile supporters, including Crump and the Rev. Al Sharpton who took turns to demand jurors find the jogger's alleged white killers guilty.
'You see the defense lawyer talk about his long legs and his dirty toenails almost as if he's like a runaway slave and that they are chasing him,' said Crump.
'They capture him and then they kill him. And the only question that remains is, is this jury going to give us a Jim Crow verdict? Or are they going to say in 2021 America we must be better than this?'
Crump, who has previously represented the families of George Floyd and Michael Brown, said Arbery did nothing to provoke Gregory McMichael, 65, his gunman son Travis McMichael, 35, and their neighbor William 'Roddie' Brian, 52, before the fatal chase in February last year.
All three have pleaded not guilty to one count of malice murder, four of felony murder, two of aggravated assault, one of false imprisonment and one of criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment.
Cooper-Jones uttered a few brief words as she left the court with her legal team just after midday to take a lunch break. She told a well-wisher: 'I'm doing good'.
Asked how her heart was, the anguished mom simply added: 'Heavy'.
'It harkens back to a Jim Crow-era type killing,' Crump added. 'You have a young black man who is minding his business and then ordinary white citizens suspect that they believe he's done something criminal.
'And instead of calling the police, instead of giving him his due process, they go out and they take the law into their own hands.'
Crump likened 25-year-old Arbery's alleged 'lynching' to the killing of Trayvon Martin but he said that video evidence here should ensure the trio cannot successfully claim self-defense as George Zimmerman did in 2012.
'We have a visual of everything that happened as he [Arbery] ran for his life. And I think that sets us apart because we literally see a young black man get lynched in broad daylight and 2020,' Crump added.
'If America can condone this, then all parents who have children of color, we can't protect them and we can't depend on the law to hold people accountable.
'I looked at that video as a lawyer that then I looked at it as a black man who's a parent of black children. And I said that we have to get justice in this matter. We have to get justice.'
Arbery's slaying was captured on video and shared around the world.
The video showed Arbery running toward and then around an idling pickup truck before its driver, Travis McMichael, blasted him at close range with a shotgun.
Soon after the shooting, McMichael's father, Gregory McMichael, told police how the pair had armed themselves, chased the young Black man and trapped him 'like a rat.'
Bryan told officers he joined the pursuit and helped cut off Arbery's escape.
The above map shows Ahmaud Arbery's approximate path and locations of the events that occurred on February 23, 2020
A nine-count indictment charged all three men with one count of malice murder, four counts of felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, one count of false imprisonment and one count of criminal attempt to commit a felony, in this case false imprisonment.
Travis McMichael was convicted of all nine charges. Gregory McMichael was convicted of all charges except malice murder. Bryan was convicted of two counts of felony murder, one count of aggravated assault, one count of false imprisonment and one count of criminal attempt to commit a felony.
Malice and felony murder convictions both carry a minimum penalty of life in prison. The judge decides whether that comes with or without the possibility of parole. Even if the possibility of parole is granted, a person convicted of murder must serve 30 years before becoming eligible. Multiple murder convictions are merged for the purposes of sentencing.
Each count of aggravated assault carries a prison term of at least one year but not more than 20 years. False imprisonment is punishable by a sentence of one to 10 years in prison.
Post a Comment