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THE family of the black Georgia jogger allegedly shot dead by two white men in broad daylight decried his slaying as a “lynching.”
Ahmaud Arbery’s mom spoke out after shocking footage apparently showed the 25-year-old being gunned down on February 23 by two men believed to be Gregory and Trevor McMichael, reports say.
In this image from video posted on Twitter, Ahmaud Arbery stumbles and falls to the ground after being shotCredit: Twitter
The incident happened in broad daylightCredit: Twitter
Arbery pictured with his mother, Wanda Cooper JonesCredit: Facebook
Shocking cellphone footage emerged showing the alleged shooters chasing Arbery in a pick-up truck.
During a press conference streamed on on First Coast News, his family’s attorney Lee Merritt said “these men were vigilantes, they were performing a lynching in the middle of the day.”
“These men were not performing any police function or any duty as citizens of Georgia,” Merritt told reporters on Wednesday.
Wanda Cooper Jones said she couldn’t watch her son’s execution because “seeing him leave the world, it’s not something that I’ll want to see ever.”
“He was my baby boy that I had on Mother’s Day of 1994,” Jones said. “He was his sister and brother’s keeper … his spirit was good. He was a yes ma’am and no ma’am type of fellow.”
Keith Smith speaks to a crowd as they march through a neighborhood in Brunswick, Ga.Credit: AP:Associated Press
Arbery was shot dead in FebruaryCredit: Facebook
Arbery’s dad described the slaying as a “hate crime” during the emotional conference.
“My young son wasn’t doing nothing – minding his own business, running and working out,” Marcus said.
“And that’s a crime? To work out and run and he ain’t breaking no law? No. Time out.”
Arbery was gunned down in a neighborhood outside Brunswick and no one has been arrested or charged in the case, even though two suspects have been named.
The McMichaels are believed to be inside the vehicle, according to multiple reports.
Travis and his father, Gregory, 64, a retired Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney investigator, allegedly saw the young unarmed man jogging before they gave chase with their guns.
Two gunmen can be seen chasing him down in the videoCredit: Twitter
The McMichaels say they thought he was a burglary suspect
His death sparked mass outrageCredit: AP:Associated Press
The video prompted local marches and mass outrage from groups like NAACP because Arbery was unarmed and black but the men chasing him in the video are white.
It shows Arbery jogging down the street while a pickup truck waits further up the road.
After the footage was posted to Twitter, Merritt said “this is murder” and a string of big names weighed in on the tragedy, including LeBron James, Justin Bieber, Joe Biden, and Kendall Jenner.
It emerged on the same day Georgia prosecutor Tom Dunden announced plans for a grand jury to hear the evidence.
But courts won’t reconvene until June 13 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Joe Biden weighed in on the debateCredit: Twitter
Arbery was out for a jog when it happenedCredit: AP:Associated Press
“Mr Arbery had not committed any crime and there was no reason for these men to believe they had the right to stop him with weapons or to use deadly force in furtherance of their unlawful attempted stop,” a statement from Merritt read.
Biden called for a “swift, full, and transparent” investigation, saying Arbery was killed in “cold blood.”
According to The New York Times, the McMichaels yelled for Arbery to stop because they wanted to talk to him.
They pulled over the pickup truck and Travis allegedly exited with the shotgun in his hand.
Gregory claimed Arbery then started to “violently attack” his son before they began struggling with the shotgun.
This is the point Travis fired “a second later there was a second shot.”
Two District Attorneys have been recused from the case due to conflicts.
Before Waycross DA George E. Barnhill stepped down from the case, he argued there wasn’t probable cause for charges against the McMichaels, who had a right to carry firearms and pursue a suspected robber under Georgia law.
Two months later, no one has been charged in his caseCredit: Facebook
A floral cross is erected at the place he was shotCredit: Getty Images – Getty
His family’s lawyer released this statementCredit: Lee Merritt
The historic Glynn County courthouse where authorities are coming under increasing pressure since the video emergedCredit: Getty Images – Getty