Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Southeast and CEO Jonathan Greenblatt issued statements condemning the killing of Ahmaud Arbery in Brunswick, Ga.
The killing occurred on Feb. 23; video of it was released on social media on May 5 and has since gone viral. The video shows an African American man, identified as Arbery, jogging as two white men in a truck confront him. An altercation ensues, and one of the white men shoots and kills Arbery. The two white men have been identified as Gregory and Travis McMichael, who are father and son.
ADL Southeast said in a May 7 statement, “ADL is deeply disturbed by the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. While the public facts of the case remain limited, there are serious and legitimate concerns that the initial investigation was improperly handled. Additionally, it is deeply troubling that a video was needed to bring more attention and resources to this incident.”
Their statement called for federal authorities to get involved in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s (GBI)’s probe into the killing.
“Because Georgia does not have a hate crime law, federal authorities should be involved in this investigation so that if a bias motive be found, charges under the Hate Crimes Prevention Act can be brought forward,” ADL Southeast said.
Greenblatt similarly tweeted, “This does not reflect a nation with justice and fair treatment to all. We are calling for an independent, transparent, federal investigation into this repugnant murder. There needs to be justice for #AhmaudArbery.”
This does not reflect a nation with justice and fair treatment to all.
We are calling for an independent, transparent, federal investigation into this repugnant murder. There needs to be justice for #AhmaudArbery. https://t.co/C8HSwJXSDn
— Jonathan Greenblatt (@JGreenblattADL) May 7, 2020
Gregory had told police in February that he and Travis saw Arbery jogging that day and thought he matched the description of a wanted suspect in a burglary, so they chased him. They took two shotguns with them because they didn’t know if Arbery was armed, Gregory said. He said that when Travis left the truck, Arbery attacked him and tried to take Travis’ gun. Travis shot and killed him in self-defense, Gregory alleges. Prosecutors didn’t charge Gregory and Travis because they thought the McMichaels had acted in accordance to state law allowing for self-defense during a citizen arrest.
However, S. Lee Merritt, the Arbery family attorney, said in a statement that the video debunks the McMichaels’ version of the incident.
“Mr. Arbery had not committed any crime and there was no reason for these men to believe they had the right to stop him with weapons or to use deadly force in furtherance of their unlawful attempted stop,” Merritt said. “This is murder.”
According to attorney David French, George court precedent states that citizen arrests can be lawfully conducted only if a citizen knows “that an offense is being committed.” French also argued that because Travis reportedly pointed his gun at Arbery, Arbery had every right to act in self-defense.
“Probable cause exists to arrest the McMichaels, now,” French wrote in The Dispatch, a conservative website. “There is compelling evidence of their guilt.”
Numerous high-profile figures, including Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James and presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, have condemned Arbery’s killing.
