The defense attorneys of Gregory McMichael, Travis McMichael, and William Bryan are calling for the Black-American assigned District Attorney, Joyette Holmes, to be removed from their upcoming trial claiming that she was "illegally appointed" her position in the case. Back in Feb., the three assailants hunted down and fatally wounded 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery with two point-blank shotgun wounds to the chest which was filmed by one of the perpetrators in William "Roddie" Bryan. It wasn't until footage of the alleged lynching was made public that the three men were indicted on a total of nine charges with each party being charged with one count of malice murder, four counts felony murder, two counts aggravated assault, one count false imprisonment, and one count criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment months later. Now, the McMichaels and Bryan are set to make their return to the Brunswick, Georgia courtroom on July 17 for an official hearing according to WOTC.
Back in May, the Cobb County Courier revealed that the prosecuting attorney for the Ahmaud Arbery case would be Joyette Holmes who was sworn into office on July 1, 2019. In an official statement from the District Attorney's office, the prosecuting team revealed that they will be acting swiftly and not handle the defense delicately stating,
"Cobb District Attorney Joyette M. Holmes announces that she has accepted Attorney General Chris Carr’s appointment of her office to handle prosecution in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, and that the call to serve will not be taken lightly." The press statement continues, "The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has charged Gregory McMichael and his son, Travis McMichael, with aggravated assault and murder in Arbery’s death. Our office will immediately gather all materials related to the investigation thus far and continue to seek additional information to move this case forward."
The DA's office has made it clear that they are committed to the "process of seeking justice in this case." With the former Republican Chief Magistrate Judge of the Cobb County Magistrate Court in Georgia at the helm of this case, Ahmaud Arbery's murder trial is in potentially good hands. However, the masses will have to wait until next Friday, July 17 to see what the defense's argument will be to have Attorney Joyette Holmes removed from the case altogether.