Jury selection for Ahmaud Arbery trial begins

Elijah Robinson, Opinion Editor

Hundreds of people were summoned for jury duty to serve on the trial of three men charged with murdering Ahmaud Arbery, 25.

Greg and Travis McMichael and William “Roddie” Bryan are charged with murder and other crimes in Arbery’s death on Feb. 23, 2020

The widely-circulated video of the fatal shooting sparked outrage.

There were also concerns that this incident was racially motivated, as it took two months for the accused to be arrested.

This incident received wide exposure as part of a larger movement against racial injustice in 2020.

Jury selection may take up to two weeks.

Over 1,000 residents in Glynn County, Georgia received jury duty notices in the mail.

The prosecution argues Arbery was jogging when the three men grabbed guns and followed him in a pick-up truck.

The defense argues the three men committed no crimes, and Arbery was followed because he was a suspect in a burglary.

Following COVID-19 safety protocols, 600 jury pool members were sent to a gymnasium for social distancing.

The jury pool will be summoned to court in groups of 20.

During this time, attorneys will question prospective jurors to select those who are the least biased towards this case.

As soon as the 12 jurors are selected, the trial begins.

The trial is expected to last more than two weeks.