Federal court proceedings against the three racist Georgians accused of murdering Ahmaud Arbery have been scheduled.
ABC News reported U.S. District Judge Lisa Godbey Wood issued the order to begin jury selection for the federal hate crime trial against Gregory and Travis McMichael, and William Bryan on August 24. The trial is slated for early 2022, and jury selection begins on February 7.
The hate crime charges include one count each of interference with civil rights, attempted kidnapping. The McMichaels, who are father and son, were separately charged with using a firearm during a violent crime. The men were indicted in April by a grand jury.
Although Georgia has enacted a hate crime law, Bryan and the McMichaels can’t be charged because the legislation didn’t exist before they allegedly murdered Arbery.
Georgia legislators enacted the law only after public outcry over Arbery’s brutal murder.
A pretrial hearing for the federal case is set for Sept. 9.
In February 2020, Arbery, who was 25-years-old at the time of his death, was shot to death and accused of breaking into newly-constructed properties in a Glynn County neighborhood. He was jogging. The suspects allegedly tracked and chased him down and held him hostage, before taking his life with a shotgun.
The McMichaels and Bryan were also prosecuted at the state level. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the three men were charged with murder, and the trial begins on October 18.
Although there is overwhelming evidence against the violent suspects, the men have all pleaded not guilty.
