A verdict has been reached in the federal hate crimes trial of Ahmaud Arbery's killers.
Travis McMichael, his father Gregory McMichael and neighbour William 'Roddie' Bryan were given life sentences in November, 2021, after being convicted of felony murder and other charges.
In the current trial, the three men in question are charged with a federal hate crime, and all three have been found guilty.
Today, February 22, a jury found Travis McMichael 'violated Arbery’s civil rights' and targeted him 'because he was Black', AP News reports. The McMichaels had pleaded not guilty to the hate crime charges, but the jury found all three men guilty of one count of interfering with Arbery's civil right to use a public street, a federal hate crime, and one count of attempted kidnapping.
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The verdict was reached after three hours of deliberations yesterday, February 21, and today.
Throughout the trial, prosecutors detailed how all three men had publicly and privately used derogatory language, which included racial slurs, when talking about Black people.
While presenting their closing argument yesterday, prosecutor Tara Lyons also reiterated the state's position from the initial trial that Arbery was killed because he was Black, CNN reports.
Lyons said, 'On February 23, 2020, the three defendants did not see 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery as a fellow human being.'
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Having now been convicted of the federal crimes, the three men face up to life in prison, on top of the life sentences they received in November.
As reported by The New York Times, the federal convictions will ensure that the three men in question serve a significant amount of prison time, even if their initial state convictions are overturned or reduced upon repeal.
The jury heard at the initial state trial how the men chased Arbery on February 23, 2020, in a pick up truck while yelling racial slurs, before he was fatally shot by Travis McMichael.
The three men were then tried at a court in the state of Georgia, where murder carries a mandatory life sentence.
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As such, superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley's sentencing decision revolved around whether the three men would be eligible for parole.
Travis and his father Greg McMichael were sentenced without the possibility of parole, while Bryan was sentenced with the possibility of parole in 30 years.
The defence attorneys have said they plan to appeal the initial state convictions.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact Stop Hate UK by visiting their website www.stophateuk.org
Topics: no-article-matching, US News