Three Men Who Shot And Killed Ahmaud Arbery, Sparking 2020 Black Lives Matter Movement Found Guilty

The three men who followed and shot Ahmaud Arbery to death have been found guilty of murder and aggravated assault charges.

Gregory McMichael, 64, was found guilty on all but one charge. His son Travis McMichael, 34, was guilty on all counts, and William Bryan Jr., who recorded the shooting, was found guilty on all but three charges.

As Judge Timothy Walmsley read guilty on the first charge for Travis McMichael, a voice screamed out yes, prompting the judge to throw the person out of the courtroom and warn the remaining audience to refrain from expressing themselves.

On February 23, 2020, Arbery was jogging when the McMichael’s saw him armed themselves with guns and chased Arbery in a truck to cut off his route. When the men reach Arbery, the recording shows him and Travis McMichael before three shots rang out.

The incident along with the death of Breonna Taylor, jump-started the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement.

The men claimed they were conducting a citizen’s arrest and acted in self-defense. The men were also charged with one count of interference with rights and with one count of attempted kidnapping according to a Justice Department release.

However, federal prosecutors said all three men “used force and threats of force to intimidate and interfere with Arbery’s right to use a public street because of his race.”

The verdict comes a week after a Wisconsin jury found Kyle Rittenhouse, who shot three people, killing two, during a protest of the shooting of Jacob Blake, not guilty.

Also charged in the matter was Jacquelyn Lee Johnson, the former Brunswick County District Attorney, who was accused of “showing favor and affection to Greg McMichael during the investigation,” according to the indictment document. Additionally, she’s accused of hindering two police officers “by directing that Travis McMichael should not be placed under arrest.”