A father and son got additional life sentences in prison on Monday for the death of Ahmaud Arbery after a judge handed down a pair of sentences in federal court.
Judge Lisa Godbey Wood of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia sentenced Travis McMichael, 36, to life plus an additional 10 years in prison on federal hate crime charges. He will serve his sentence in state prison along with his father, Gregory McMichael, 66, who was sentenced hours later to life in prison plus seven years. Wood declined a request by their attorneys to be placed in federal prison.
A neighbor of the McMichaels who filmed the fatal incident, William “Roddie” Bryan, 52, was sentenced to 35 years in state prison for violating Arbery’s civil rights along with attempted kidnapping charges. Bryan was previously sentenced in a Georgia state court to life with a possibility of parole for his involvement in Arbery’s murder.
THREE MEN IN AHMAUD ARBERY CASE CONVICTED OF FEDERAL HATE CRIMES
The three were found guilty in February of violating Arbery’s civil rights by attacking him because of his race and attempting to kidnap him on Feb. 23, 2020, while Arbery was jogging during the afternoon in Satilla Shores, a neighborhood near Brunswick.
Travis McMichael, who fatally shot Arbery, was also found guilty of using and carrying a Remington shotgun, while his father, Gregory, was found guilty of using and carrying a .357 Magnum revolver. Bryan was not convicted of a federal firearms charge.
The men were also convicted last year of murder and other crimes in state court and sentenced to life terms at the time. They have appealed their state convictions.
Arbery’s father, Marcus Arbery, previously said his family would request the men serve the maximum sentence in state prison on the federal charges.
Gregory McMichael has asked to serve 20 years in prison, according to a motion filed by his attorneys last Monday.
The motion also included a letter to Wood from Leigh McMichael, wife of Greg McMichael and mother to Travis McMichael.
“The death of Ahmaud Arbery was a tragedy of epic proportions,” she wrote. “Contrary to popular opinion, my family cannot imagine the pain and hurt that the Arbery family and friends must be experiencing.”
“Please have mercy on Greg. His intention in this tragedy was not to hurt anyone,” Leigh McMichael added.
The McMichaels previously offered to plead guilty in exchange for serving 30 years in federal prison, which is generally considered safer than state prisons, though a judge rejected the plea deal in January. The parents of Arbery publicly criticized the deal and said they were “vehemently” opposed to it.
In regard to the February 2020 killing of Arbery, the McMichaels say they believed Arbery appeared suspicious in the context of a series of recent neighborhood break-ins at the time. An attorney for Bryan said his client joined the McMichaels’ pursuit of Arbery under the assumption the man they were chasing had “done something wrong.”
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However, trial testimony did reveal there were no home burglaries in the neighborhood where the murder happened, though there were thefts from unlocked cars.
Prosecutors also showed evidence the three men had a history of uttering racist slurs when they offered testimony from 20 witnesses during an earlier trial.
