Mayor-elect Cosby Johnson will lead city government at a time when the Coastal Georgia community is reckoning with racial justice in the wake of the murder of Ahmaud Arbery.
On this week's Georgia Today podcast, we explore the emotional toll surrounding the Brunswick trial of the three men convicted of killing Ahmaud Arbery. During the trial, says Larry Hobbs from the Brunswick News, "Marcus Arbery and Wanda Cooper-Jones were the faces of courage — to see these images of their son over and over again, to hear what the defense said about their son — this was a grueling episode for them." After the guilty verdicts in the long-awaited trial, where do Brunswick and Glynn County go from here?
The federal hate crime trial, which includes charges of murder, kidnapping attempts and other violence, is set to begin on Feb. 7 at the Brunswick U.S. District Court Southern District of Georgia courthouse, nearly two years after Arbery was shot at close range.
Ahmaud Arbery’s death sparked a small group of acquaintances to band together to try to force Glynn County to confront the many failures of its law enforcement and other elected officials. Their group, A Better Glynn, wields a powerful combination of local roots, national experience and professional know-how.
Monday on Political Rewind: Scientists say there is much to learn about the dangers of the new coronavirus variant. Meanwhile, residents in Brunswick and Glynn County go about their days in aftermath of the Ahmaud Arbery murder trial.
Friday on Political Rewind: A verdict in a trial from a small town in Georgia gripped the nation. Travis McMichael, Gregory McMichael and William "Roddie" Bryan were found guilty of murder charges on Wednesday. However, questions linger about what the case means for racial justice in the United States.
Travis McMichael; his father, Greg; and their neighbor William "Roddie" Bryan all faced nine criminal counts in Georgia state court, including felony murder, aggravated assault and false imprisonment.
Ahmaud Arbery's mother was one voice in a chorus celebrating the jury’s verdict. Civil rights activists and politicians praised the decision: all three defendants found guilty of felony murder.
After 13 days of testimony, a disproportionately white jury in Georgia convicted all three white men of murder charges in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. Murder convictions carry a minimum penalty of life in prison.
Jurors in the trial of the three men charged in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery must decide whether one or all of them is guilty of murder. Before the jurors retired to the jury room to begin their deliberations, the judge read them specific instructions on the law that's applicable to this case.
Tuesday on Political Rewind: Questions about what constitutes legal self-defense and proper use of the citizen's arrest law dominated closing arguments in the trial of the men charged with murder in Ahmaud Arbery's shooting death. Meanwhile, the new Republican-drawn Georgia congressional map sets up a battle between Democratic incumbents Carolyn Bordeaux and Lucy McBath.
A jury now has the case after a 13-day trial of three white men charged with murder and other crimes in the death of Ahmaud Arbery. The jury got the case on Tuesday after final closing arguments from the prosecutor and instructions from a judge.
