Defense Wants ‘No Press’ For Part Of Arbery Jury Selection

Defense attorneys for men charged in the slaying of Ahmaud Arbery are asking a Georgia judge to keep reporters out of the courtroom when lawyers question potential jurors to determine if they have biases in the widely publicized case.

Greg McMichael and Travis McMichael, a white father and son, are charged with murder in the February 2020 killing of Arbery, a 25-year-old Black man who was chased and shot after the McMichaels spotted him running in their neighborhood outside the coastal port city of Brunswick. A neighbor who joined the pursuit, William “Roddie” Bryan, was also charged with murder.

Jury selection in the three men’s trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 18. Defense attorneys for the McMichaels filed a legal motion Wednesday that proposes three main steps. Jury pool members would first answer a written questionnaire. Then they would be brought one at a time into the courtroom for questioning by the judge and lawyers. Finally, potential jurors would face additional questions in groups of 12.