The calls for justice are growing louder in Brunswick, Georgia after video is released showing an unarmed black man shot while he was jogging. According to a police report, a father and son admit they were the ones involved in the deadly confrontation with Ahmaud Arbery back in February, but they haven’t been arrested or charged. BET writes:
On February 23 in the middle of the afternoon, Gregory McMichael, 64, who is a former police officer, and his son, Travis McMichael, 34, reportedly confronted Arbery because they suspected him of being a burglar in the suburban neighborhood of Satilla Shores, Georgia. Arbery was unarmed and reportedly jogging through the quiet neighborhood.
The police report said the father and son spotted him, armed themselves with a .357 magnum and a shotgun, jumped into a pickup truck and went after Arbery.
Now we are seeing a video of what happened from there. We have to warn you the video is hard to watch, but it’s important to see exactly what happened. CNN says the video was initially posted by a local radio station host:
The 36-second video, which has been deleted from the radio station website, was taken by a person in a vehicle that pulls up behind a pickup truck that has stopped in the road. CNN has not independently verified who recorded the video.
Ahmaud Arbery was out jogging in Brunswick, Georgia, when two white men hunted him down and murdered him two months ago. they are walking around free and have not been charged. Ahmaud was only 25 years old. His family deserves justice for this hate crime
https://t.co/IHVNpfk414— Donté Stallworth (@DonteStallworth) May 5, 2020
The Atlanta-Journal Constitution writes:
In a span of 12 hours, a video showing the final moments of a young Brunswick man’s life upended assumptions about what would happen to the father and son under investigation for fatally shooting 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery.
Brunswick attorney James Yancey said he believes Greg and Travis McMichael would have avoided criminal charges if not for the video. “It showed the depths of humanity,” Yancey said.
S. Lee Merritt, the attorney for the Arbery family says this was the lynching of an innocent man and the only reason there isn’t an indictment is “because these men were white, these men have strong law enforcement ties.”
Justice demands that arrests be made immediately for the murder of #AhmaudArbery. #IrunwithMaud pic.twitter.com/0naWrt66lj
— Lee Merritt (@MerrittForTexas) May 5, 2020
The Brunswick News says due to coronavirus, the grand jury won’t convene until mid-June. In the meantime the shooter and his son remain free:
The shooting case has already been shifted to three DA offices, gaining an emotionally charged national audience in the process. Brunswick Judicial Circuit DA Jackie Johnson immediately claimed a conflict of interest, citing Greg McMichael’s service of more than 20 years with her office. It was next assigned to Ware County DA George E. Barnhill. However, Barnhill stepped down after a conflict in the case was raised because his son is an attorney in the Brunswick Judicial Circuit, where Greg McMichael worked.
That state Attorney General’s Office turned the case over to DA Durden on April 13. In his statement Tuesday, Durden acknowledged the pandemic-induced delay could cause more public frustration over the case. However, Durden feels it imperative that a grand jury review the facts.
Watch more above from the NBC affiliate in Jacksonville, Florida.