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Arbery's shooter withdraws guilty plea

February 4, 2022

The man convicted of murdering Black man Ahmaud Arbery has withdrawn his guilty plea to federal hate crime charges. The reversal means he will stand trial next week for the charges.

https://p.dw.com/p/46Y9N
A person holds up a sign reading 'Justice for Ahmaud' outside the Glynn County Courthouse in Georgia
The federal hate crime trial of Arbery's three killers is expected to commence next weekImage: Sean Rayford/AFP/Getty Images

Travis McMichael, the man convicted of shooting dead Black man Ahmaud Arbery, said Friday he was withdrawing his guilty plea on federal hate crime charges.

The 36-year-old is scheduled to proceed to trial next week with his two co-defendants, his father Gregory McMichael, 66, and their neighbor William "Roddie" Bryan.

The three men were convicted in a state trial last year of chasing down and murdering Arbery, 25, while he was out jogging in a coastal suburb of Georgia in February 2020. They were sentenced to life in prison.

Travis McMichael, left, speaks with his attorney Bob Rubin
Travis McMichael, left, was given a life sentence without the possibility of parole for shooting Arbery deadImage: Stephen B. Morton/AP/picture alliance

Plea bargain rejected

The younger McMichael told the US District Court in Georgia earlier this week that he was willing to plead guilty to shooting Arbery because of his race as part of a plea bargain.

Under the deal with prosecutors, he was to serve a 30-year hate crime sentence in a federal prison before serving out his life term for murder in the state of Georgia.

But McMichael changed his mind and withdrew the guilty plea after the district judge rejected the agreement — which had been criticized by Arbery's family — as overly preferential.

Ahmaud Arbery's mother Wanda Cooper-Jones, center, is surrounded by supporters
Arbery's mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, had strongly objected to the plea dealImage: Stephen B. Morton/AP/picture alliance

The Georgia prison system is widely seen as a harsher environment for inmates than federal facilities.

Gregory McMichael had reached a similar plea agreement with prosecutors, but he withdrew his guilty plea late Thursday, indicating he would head to trial.

Motivated by racism

In the text of the rejected plea deal, the younger McMichael had said for the first time that racism played a part in his decision to pursue Arbery. He and his father had armed themselves before chasing down the Black man in their pick-up truck near the port city of Brunswick, Georgia.

Bryan joined the pursuit in his own truck and used his cellphone to record Travis McMichael opening fire.

The footage ultimately went viral, sparking public outrage after months passed before the three white men were arrested.

During the murder trial in state court, defense attorneys argued the McMichaels were justified in pursuing Arbery because they had a reasonable suspicion he had committed crimes in the neighborhood.

Travis McMichael testified that he opened fire after Arbery attacked him.

Bryan argued that he was an innocent bystander who merely filmed the encounter.

Jury selection in the federal hate crime trial is scheduled to begin on Monday.

nm/sms (Reuters, AP)