Jesse Jackson/photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons (Lorie Shaull)
A judge in charge of the Ahmaud Arbery trial taking place in Glynn County, Georgia denied a request made by defense lawyer Kevin Gogh on Monday, Nov. 15, who asked the court to remove civil rights leader Jesse Jackson from the room, citing that Rev. Al Sharpton had been there the week before, NBC News reported.
William “Roddie” Bryan, who is facing murder charges related to Arbery’s death, is Gough’s reported client. According to CNN, Bryan along with Gregory McMichael and his son Travis McMichael were all arrested after Arbery, a 25-year-old Black man, was fatally shot while out jogging in February 2020.
The three white men later stated that they were attempting to make a citizen’s arrest.
According to NBC News, Gough said about Jackson’s presence at the trial earlier this week, “He is, your honor, I think we all know, an icon in the civil rights movement,” adding, “And in other circumstances, I think everybody would be happy to have their picture taken, maybe get an autograph, but in the context of this trial, we object to his presence in the public gallery inside the courtroom.”
Criticizing Arbery’s family for bringing prominent Black ministers to attend the trial, Gough continued, “The issue that I brought up previously is how many pastors does the Arbery family have? We had the Rev. Al Sharpton here earlier, last week…I don’t know who Mr. Rev. Jackson is pastoring here.”
Referring to a prominent Black pastor and senator in Georgia, Gough reportedly also stated, “I guess the next question is which pastor is next? Is Raphael Warnock going to be the next person appearing this afternoon? We don’t know.”
Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley promptly denied the request, telling Gough, “At this point, it’s almost as if you’re trying to continue this for purposes other than just bringing it to the court’s attention. I find that objectionable from the court’s standpoint.”
Related Post: Defense Lawyers for Ahmaud Arbery’s Accused Killers Want His Criminal and Mental Health Records Admitted As Evidence
Shutting him completely down, the Georgia judge added, “I’m done talking about it, Mr. Gough. The court is not going to single out any particular individual or group of individuals as not being allowed to be in this courtroom as a member of the public. If there is a disruption, you’re more than welcome to call that to my attention.”
According to CNN, Jackson said that he will continue to attend the trial, calling it a “moral obligation.” The 80-year-old activist also stated, “I am (standing) by people who are in need, backs against the wall. It’s what we do. So we are going to keep sitting with this family. It is a priority focus of ours now.”