- The jury in the Ahmaud Arbery murder trial will not see a toxicology report showing that a small amount of THC was found in Arbery’s blood.
- On Thursday, High Court Judge Timothy Wormsley heard an argument about what evidence can be provided to jurors.
- The judge previously ruled that Arbery’s mental health records cannot be used as evidence and warned defense lawyers not to use the THC toxicology report as a way to present Arbery’s mental health to the jury.
A judge in Georgia ruled on Thursday that in the trial of three white men accused of the murder of black jogger Ahmed Abery, the jury would not see the toxicology report showing in Abery. Blood.
The jury is scheduled to be sworn in at the Green County Superior Court on Friday morning and will hear an opening statement about the fatal shooting that occurred on February 23, 2020, when Abery was running in the mostly white residential area of the Satila Coast in the afternoon.
On Thursday, High Court Judge Timothy Wormsley heard an argument about what evidence can be provided to jurors.
Lawyers for Travis McMichael, his father Gregory McMichael and their neighbor William “Roddie” Bryan said the three men took self-defense actions after hunting down and approaching the 25-year-old Arbery.
According to police, 35-year-old Travis McMichael fired three shots after Arbery initially grabbed the weapon and then turned to escape. Defense lawyers say these people are trying to get citizens to arrest people they think are like thieves.
Abery entered a construction site during the run, but the owner of the property stated that he believed Abery stopped just to drink water and did not take any measures.
The defendant’s lawyer asked to exclude the video of the image taken from the body camera of the responding police, which showed the wound on Abery’s body. Wormsley was on the side of the prosecutor, thinking that the jury had the right to see how the body was found.
The defense also tried to tell the jury that Abery was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder and that smoking marijuana would cause people with this disease to be aggressive. The judge previously ruled that Arbery’s mental health records cannot be used as evidence and warned defense lawyers not to use the THC toxicology report as a way to present Arbery’s mental health to the jury.
Prosecutors at the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office said preliminary tests on Abery’s body did not reveal any traces of drugs. The second test found 3.2 ng per milliliter of THC or THC in his blood, which they called a trace amount.
The chief prosecutor Linda Dunikoski stated that the toxicology report has nothing to do with the case:
Why Mr. Abery did what he did was completely irrelevant. The problem is what the defendant did. They didn’t know anything about the contents of his system.
Dressing table
The judge stated that he is still considering a plea that the jury cannot see any images of Travis McMichael’s pickup truck, and the dressing table he posted on it last year is visible. There is a large image of the old Georgia flag on the nameplate, which contains the Confederate battle flag.
Jason Sheffield, a lawyer for the young McMichael, said that although his client might say it was a symbol of Southern pride, the prosecutors are planning to argue that the section “is the defendant’s racist comments.”
The prosecutor said they have the right to raise this issue.
“If Travis McMichael stand up,” Dunikowski said, “we will ask him why you put that in the front of the truck?”
Before the jury of 11 whites and 1 black was selected on Wednesday, it took more than two weeks to question potential jurors in Green County, which is 70% white.
Don’t miss a story. Choose from our newsletter Send the news you want directly to your inbox.
