BRUNSWICK, Ga. — This upcoming February will mark four years since the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, the jogger shot and killed by two white men, chasing after him.
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“We struggle every day, especially come holiday time.” Marcus Arbery Sr. said.
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His death sparked a nationwide outrage once video of the shooting was released, about a month after the murder.
The shooters, Greg and Travis McMichael, along with the man who recorded the incident, William “Roddie” Bryan, will spend life in prison. However, there is still one case left to prosecute.
Former prosecutor, Jackie Johnson, is charged with hindering the police investigation into Arbery’s death and violating her oath of office. She last appeared in court in September of 2021 when she was indicted. Her last court hearing was December of 2022, but she waived her right to appear.
Read: The killing of Ahmaud Arbery
“The question ultimately is whether or not they [attorneys] are slow walking the case in order to allow distance and time to occur between all of these events and a subsequent prosecution,” Dale Carson said. Carson is Action News Jax’s law and safety expert. He has decades of experience as a former FBI agent and Miami police officer. He is currently a defense attorney in Duval County.
After the murder, phone records show Greg McMichael called Johnson, who was the Brunswick District Attorney, sixteen different times. McMichael previously worked as an investigator under Johnson. She eventually did recuse herself from the case due to the conflict, and it turned it over to outside prosecutors.
Three days after the shooting, Johnson told the Attorney General’s Office that George Barnhill, the Waycross District Attorney, had accepted the case. Legal filings said Johnson did not disclose that Barnhill had already reviewed the case and declared the shooting was done in self-defense. He eventually recused himself from the case as well.
WATCH: Life sentences for death of Ahmaud Arbery
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“She tried to cover it up,” Marcus Arbery said.
Carson believed she handled the case the right away.
“I guess people may have a question on whether her favoritism somehow benefited the individuals that ultimately were prosecuted and found guilty, but I don’t believe that’s the case,” Carson said. “I don’t see where she tried not to prosecute.”
Johnson remains an attorney in good standing, according to the State Bar of Georgia website. She is also an attorney in Florida.
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We reached out to the Office of the Attorney General regarding the case. A spokesperson sent us this statement:
“This case remains open. The defendant had previously waived arraignment and pleaded not guilty. A December 2022 hearing was continued. Specifically, the continuance was requested by the defense due to a conflict on their part. A new date for this hearing has not been set. Beyond that, while we cannot comment on specific points related to this case, we can note generally that court proceedings take varying periods of time depending on a host of factors, including the case load of the courts, judges and lawyers. We remain fully prepared to present our case in court, and we look forward to the opportunity to do so. Our goal is to secure maximum justice for Ahmaud Arbery and his family, and we have never stopped fighting for them.”
— Kara Richardson, spokesperson for Attorney General Chris Carr
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