BRUNSWICK, Ga. — A federal judge rejected the plea deals for Travis and Gregory McMichael in the pre trial for their federal hate crime case.
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Travis and Gregory are two of the three men convicted by the state of killing Ahmaud Arbery in 2020.
Before hearing the judge’s decision Monday, the Arbery family was upset that they were not notified about the DOJ’s decision to move forward with the plea deals.
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Action News Jax law and safety expert Dale Carson said that ordinarily, there is no notice that a plea deal is in progress.
He also explained that it could be more desirable for defendants to plead guilty in this instance because it is assumed that serving time in the federal penitentiary is easier than serving in the state penitentiary. This is because the government has more money and the facilities are better.
“When you’re in prison, you need to be in prison,” said Marcus Arbery, Ahmaud’s father.
“I told them very, very adamantly that I wanted them to go to state prison and do their time that Judge Walmsley gave them back ... on the seventh of January,” said Ahmaud’s mother, Wanda Cooper Jones, in response to the plea deal.
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Carson told Action News Jax that when it comes down to where Travis and Gregory McMichael will do their time, one entity doesn’t supersede the other. Ultimately, the state and federal government will have to come to an agreement.
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