…and they’re not.
Gregory McMichael, 64, and Travis McMichael, 34, were arrested in the death of Ahmaud Arbery, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced. Both men face charges of aggravated assault and murder.
It also seems that the person filming was a neighbor who was also involved in trying to chase this guy down. I’m curious if charges of some kind will be brought against him
This part of the article blew my mind.
George Barnhill, one of the prosecutors who first handled the case, defended the actions of the McMichaels and their neighbor in the truck. In a letter to the Glynn County Police Department obtained by NBC News, Barnhill wrote that the men had “solid first hand probable cause” to chase Arbery, a “burglary suspect,” and stop him.
Barnhill also said that after he watched the video of the incident, “given the fact Arbery initiated the fight” and grabbed the shotgun, he believed Travis McMichael “was allowed to use deadly force to protect himself” under Georgia law.
That’s absurd in my opinion. No details were given about what this probable cause might be, but even if that were rock-solid, the lethal force reasoning is very flawed in my opinion. This means the prosecutor expects people to assume good will if a group of angry men chase you down to confront you with guns drawn on a public road.
Absurd. People had every right to be very upset at the lack of arrests. It boggles the mind how a lawyer could look at that video, knowing that all three men were chasing Arbery down in two separate vehicles, and conclude Arbery initiated the violence. Barring some kind of bombshell revelation or new video, I can’t see how these guys have a chance at acquittal.
Even if strict Duty To Retreat clauses are in place in GA (I’m not sure if they are), I’d argue that Arbery satisfied that requirement as well when he clearly ran to the opposite side of the truck before he decided to close the distance and (presumably) fight for his life.
We haven’t really talked about Duty To Retreat a lot in here. Some states have it, the ones that don’t are generally called “Stand Your Ground” states. If anyone is curious.