Prosecutor: Travis and Gregory McMichael showed no empathy for Ahmaud Arbery

A prosecutor on Friday said Travis and Gregory McMichael should serve mandatory life sentences without the chance of parole for the killing of Ahmaud Arbery due to the lack of empathy they showed at the time.

Prosecutor Linda Dunikoski argued that Gregory McMichael, who is Travis McMichael’s father, made statements about self-defense and being allegedly attacked at the scene of the crime and that there was “no empathy for the trapped and terrified Ahmaud Arbery.”

“Greg McMichael attempted to control the narrative from the get-go at the scene,” Dunikoski said. “He was running around the scene talking to everybody. And when talking to this unknown man who walked up to give him water, he basically said no, this guy’s an asshole. He is 20 feet from Mr. Arbery’s body referring to Mr. Arbery as an asshole. There’s been no remorse shown and certainly no empathy from either man.”

“Because empathy would have said, Hey, how must this look to this person that we’re chasing? Are we terrifying this person? Are we scaring them? No empathy for the trapped and terrified Ahmad Arbery. There was thoughtlessness as to the consequences. Thoughtlessness as to the alternatives. There was vigilantism. And because of that, we’re asking for Travis McMichael and Greg McMichael to be sentenced to life with the possibility of parole,” she added.

Both McMichaels were found guilty on murder charges, which carry a mandatory life imprisonment in Georgia. But the judge in the case can choose to give them the chance of parole.

The McMichaels and neighbor William “Roddie” Bryan followed Arbery in a pickup truck on Feb. 23, 2020, after they saw him running in the neighborhood. Gregory McMichael shot Arbery, and the three men later claimed that they had attempted to make a citizen’s arrest at the time. 

“When you take another person’s life, it can’t be undone. It can’t be taken back. There is no do over. It’s final and that means caution must prevail. Thoughtfulness, empathy and insight must prevail. Not vigilantism,” Dunikoski said.