Daily US Times: Three US men, all are white, have been found guilty of killing a black jogger named Ahmaud Arbery last year in a case that became a rallying cry to racial justice protesters.
The 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery was shot on 23 February 2020 in a confrontation with Travis and Gregory McMichael and their neighbour, William Bryan.
The defendants said they acted in self-defence during a citizen’s arrest; prosecutors said race was a factor.
The men guilty now face minimum sentences of life in prison.
A mainly white jury of 12 deliberated for about 10 hours before returning their verdict at around midday on Wednesday.
The trio were found guilty of murder, false imprisonment, aggravated assault and criminal intent to commit a felony.
The three men will face another trial in February in a federal hate crimes case, alleging that they targeted Arbery because he was black.
How did Ahmaud Arbery die?
Arbery was out jogging in the afternoon on the outskirts of the coastal city of Brunswick in Georgia.
The elder McMichael, a neighbourhood resident, told police he believed Arbery resembled the suspect in a series of burglaries in the suburban community of Satilla Shores.
Police have said no reports were filed regarding these alleged break-ins, and no stolen property was found in Arbery’s possession.
The McMichaels armed themselves with a pistol and a shotgun and pursued Arbery, who was unarmed, in a pickup truck through the neighbourhood. Bryan later joined the pursuit.
The jury heard a 911 call in which the elder McMichael told an operator: “I’m out here in Satilla Shores. There’s a black male running down the street.”
The younger McMichael testified during the trial that he tried to talk to Arbery while the two were still in their truck and Arbery never responded.
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