The three white men convicted for the murder of Black Georgia jogger Ahmaud Arbery were sentenced to life in prison on Friday after they were found guilty in November.
Travis McMichael, 35, and Gregory McMichael, 66, confronted Arbery as he jogged through their neighborhood in February 2020. Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley handed down the sentences Friday, saying neither Travis — who pulled the trigger — nor his father Gregory will be eligible for parole. Their neighbor, William “Roddie” Bryan Jr., 52, will be eligible for parole after serving 30 years in prison.
The three men were found guilty in November after the jury deliberated for two days.
Notably, the McMichaels were also indicted on three separate federal hate crime charges. The federal trial is set for February and they could face additional penalties if convicted of those charges, which include interference with rights, attempted kidnapping and using, carrying, brandishing, and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
Bryan was acquitted in November on the charge of malice murder, but, like the McMichaels, was also indicted on federal hate crime charges, including interference with rights and attempted kidnapping. He pleaded not guilty on those charges. Again, if convicted, he may face additional penalties.
Arbery was shot and killed on Feb. 23, 2020, when he was going for a jog in the Satilla Shores neighborhood in Brunswick, Georgia. A white father and son — the McMichaels — began following Arbery in their pick-up truck before the son, Travis, fired three shots at Arbery, killing him. The incident was recorded on video by Bryan, who was also tailing Arbery in another vehicle.
It wasn’t until May of last year, three months after Arbery’s death, that the McMichaels and Ryan were arrested and charged with murder.