Additional life sentences handed down in Arbery case

ATLANTA — A federal court has sentenced the father and son responsible for murdering a black jogger near Brunswick to life in prison.

Ahmaud Arbery, 25, was shot to death in February 2020 by Greg McMichael and his son, Travis. The two men chased Arbery down a street in a pickup truck after observing him on the property of a nearby home under construction.

With the help of William “Roddie” Bryan, who drove a second truck, the men cornered Arbery, and Travis McMichael pulled the trigger. Bryan received a 35-year prison sentence Monday.

The three men already were facing life sentences handed down early this year following a state trial late last year. The federal trial focused on the defendants’ racist beliefs to prove that they likely would not have murdered Arbery if they had not been deeply prejudiced against black people.

The federal jury convicted the trio of hate crimes and kidnapping. The McMichaels also were convicted on weapons-use charges.

The McMichaels were also sentenced to an additional 20 years on the kidnapping charges, according to news reports. They were sentenced to life without parole after the state trial. Bryan was sentenced to life with a possibility of parole after 30 years because he demonstrated remorse at the crime scene.

The federal judge on Monday denied the McMichaels’ requests to be transferred to federal prison to serve their time, meaning they will likely serve their time in Georgia state prisons.

The case received national attention, prompting the General Assembly to pass a state hate crimes law in 2020 and an overhaul of Georgia’s citizens arrest law last year.