Three white men were found guilty last week of murdering Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, in February 2020, shortly before George Floyd’s death sent shockwaves throughout the United States.
The three defendants – Travis McMichael, 35; his father, Gregory McMichael, 65; and their neighbor William Bryan, 52 – may face life imprisonment. As the three seek to file appeals, GoFundMe has shut the page for Bryan, who is struggling to raise funds for his appeal and was trying to do so online.
The jury agreed with prosecutors’ claims that Arbery posed no real threat to the three men who chased him through their suburban neighborhood before killing him.
“You can’t start it and claim self-defense,” said the lead prosecutor. “And they started this.”
Arbery’s mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, praised the outcome of the trial: “I never thought this day would come, but God is good.”
Gov. Brian Kemp (R-Georgia) said he hopes the verdicts will “lead to a path of healing and reconciliation.”
President Joe Biden commented on Arbery’s death, calling it a “devastating reminder of how far we have to go in the fight for racial justice in this country.”
