The United States Department of Justice has decided to file federal hate crime charges against the three men accused of murdering Ahmaud Arbery on February 23, 2020. Travis McMichael, Gregory Michael and William “Roddie” Bryan had previously pleaded not guilty to “malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, and criminal attempt to commit a felony.”
“Travis McMichael, 35; Travis’s father, Gregory McMichael, 65; and William “Roddie” Bryan, 51, were each charged with one count of interference with rights and with one count of attempted kidnapping. Travis and Gregory McMichael were also charged with one count each of using, carrying, and brandishing—and in Travis’s case, discharging—a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence,” the Department of Justice wrote in their report.
The incident in question took place last February in Glynn County. Arbery was jogging through the neighborhood when the McMichaels and Bryan accused him of stopping to look through houses that were under construction. Given that there had allegedly been robberies in the area lately, the three men believed he could possibly be connected to the crimes. As a result, the three men followed Arbery. Ultimately, the McMichaels confronted Arbery and killed him as Bryan recorded the incident.
The two men were not immediately arrested for their actions, but were later detained after public pressure grew. Arbery’s death sparked protests around the country before being followed by the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
At this time, no trial date has been set.
Three Georgia Men Charged with Federal Hate Crimes and Attempted Kidnapping in Connection with the Death of Ahmaud Arberyhttps://t.co/qGOmwCRfSj
— DOJ Civil Rights (@CivilRights) April 28, 2021
