The jury found all three men charged in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery guilty on Wednesday.
The convictions for Greg McMichael, son Travis McMichael and neighbor William “Roddie” Bryan came after jurors deliberated for about 10 hours. The men face minimum sentences of life in prison. It is up to the judge to decide whether that comes with or without the possibility of parole.
Father and son Greg and Travis McMichael grabbed guns and pursued Arbery in a pickup truck after spotting him running through their subdivision on Feb. 23, 2020. A neighbor, William “Roddie” Bryan, joined the chase and recorded the video of Travis McMichael opening fire as Arbery threw punches and grabbed for McMichael’s shotgun.
The jury sent a note to Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley soon after returning to court Wednesday morning asking to view two versions of the shooting video the original and one that investigators enhanced to reduce shadows three times apiece.
Jurors returned to the courtroom to see the videos and listen again the 911 call one of the defendants made from the bed of a pickup truck about 30 seconds before the shooting.
Before the jurors retired to the jury room to begin their deliberations on Tuesday, the judge read them specific instructions on the law that’s applicable to this case.
The jury instructions were carefully put together with input from the lawyers for the defense and prosecution, each side trying to make sure instructions on the parts of the law that support its case were included.
There must be at least some evidence admitted during the trial that supports the applicability of a given law for it to be included in the jury instructions.
