The three white men who murdered Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old Black man, in the streets of Satilla Shores near Brunswick, Georgia, two years ago were found guilty in a federal hate-crime trial on Tuesday.
The federal case against Travis McMichael, his father Gregory, and their neighbor William “Roddie” Bryan, centered on what drove them to commit the murder—a crime they were previously convicted of in state court. Specifically, federal prosecutors sought to prove they were motivated by racial animus when they used pick-up trucks to chase, cut off, and gun down Arbery on Feb. 23, 2020.
Already looking at life in prison for felony murder at the state level, the men faced federal charges of interfering with Arbery’s right to use a public street because of his race, as well as attempted kidnapping. The McMichaels were also charged with firearm offenses related to the fatal shooting; Travis McMichael fired the shots that killed Arbery.
