Ahmaud Arbery was slain by Greg and Travis McMichael, starting a snowball effect of grief and empathy that helped power the Black Lives Matter movement. Arbery, much like George Floyd, became a face for a nation of people that are fed up. The terrifying killing of Arbery captured our attention, and it continues to demand our inspection. As the days slowly get closer to a trial for the McMichaels, it appears their defense team is doing everything it can to try and win.
The defense team has a long list of demands that they would like when a trial date gets set. According to the documents they filed, the defense is asking that Arbery doesn't get mentioned as a "victim". They assert that since the McMichaels are arguing self-defense, that they were in fact the victims and not Arbery. They don't want "loaded words" like "victim" being used in any circumstance when pertaining to Arbery. Only neutral language.
The defense team is also asking that only one photo of Arbery be used, and it cannot include him with family members or close friends. They also requested that none of his family be able to identify him in court, only unrelated third party witnesses. Their stance here is that they don't want to let the jury see Arbery as a sympathetic character. AKA, they want to dehumanize him by removing elements of his life, like family and friends, that would show his true qualities.
Lastly, the defense has requested that no Black Lives Matter face masks be allowed in court, that no phone calls they've made in jail can be used as evidence (kinda points to something going on there, no?), but they would like to use Arbery's criminal record against him. Of course, these are all very one-sided requests, however, a judge must still respond to them. We'll keep you updated when that happens.
[Via]