'We don't want any more Black pastors' in Arbery murder trial, lawyer says
Category: News & Politics
Via: hallux • 3 years ago • 34 commentsBy: Reporting by Mana Rabiee; Writing by Ana Nicolaci da Costa; Editing by William Mallard
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
A lawyer for one of the three white men charged with killing Ahmaud Arbery said his team did not want “any more Black pastors coming” into the Georgia courtroom after a civil rights leader attended proceedings.
Thursday’s comment by Kevin Gough drew sharp criticism from the Rev. Al Sharpton, whom the defense attorney cited in asking the judge in the high-profile case to exclude African-American clergy.
Arbery, a 25-year old Black man, was chased by the three men and shot dead in a mostly white neighborhood in the coastal city of Brunswick in February 2020. The three have pleaded not guilty to murder, aggravated assault and false imprisonment in the trial.
“If their pastor’s Al Sharpton right now, that’s fine. But then that’s it. We don’t want any more Black pastors coming in here … sitting with the victim’s family, trying to influence a jury in this case,” said attorney Kevin Gough, who represents defendant William “Roddie” Bryan.
Sharpton had attended the trial on Wednesday and conducted a prayer vigil with Arbery’s parents outside the courthouse, he said on his official Twitter account.
The trial comes as the killings of Black Americans by police in recent years have sparked a renewed push for civil rights in the United States, with the murder of George Floyd captured on video last year sparking worldwide protests.
“The arrogant insensitivity of attorney Kevin Gough in asking a judge to bar me or any minister of the family’s choice underscores the disregard for the value of the human life lost and the grieving of a family in need (of) spiritual and community support,” Sharpton said.
He said his attendance was “not disruptive in any way” and was “at the invitation of the family.”
Gough, who said he did not learn about Sharpton’s presence until after that day’s court session, told Judge Timothy Walmsley, “We want to keep politics out of this case.” He suggested the presence of figures like Sharpton “could be consciously or unconsciously an attempt to pressure or influence the jury.”
The judge told Gough he was “not going to blanketly exclude members of the public from this courtroom.”
Bryan, 52, as well as neighbor Gregory McMichael, 65, and his son Travis McMichael, 35, face life in prison if convicted of murder.
The jury was shown videos on Thursday of Arbery walking around a vacant property on earlier visits to the Georgia neighborhood where he was shot. Prosecutors say Arbery was an avid runner out for a Sunday afternoon jog.
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In the fictional world the US is awash in brilliant lawyers, in the real world it is wanting.
goober lawyers rely on the long established good old boy network, not the law.
Can't have any black pastors or it seems more than one black juror in a country that is 25% black.
No such thing as a "jury of peers" in Georgia - period.
heaven forbid. the last time that happened, black people got the vote and could walk thru any open door...
14.3% but who's counting right
Obviously, you're not...From the US Census Bureau, the black population of Glynn County GA is 26.6%
My mistake. I thought you were talking the US. Sorry.
Only because you typed "one black juror in a country that is 25% black" but I guess I should have known since it was in a court in a county.
Yes, you should have, and you are correct that I said country and not county. My typo.
It's hilarious that they talk about "Black pastors" then mention Al Sharpton. That man's no more a pastor / reverend / clergy than I am the messiah.
Is Paula White a legitimate pastor?
Did I mention her?
Only because she was able to collect the needed box tops.
No different than Sharpton. If he became a pastor today, it would probably be through an internet certificate program.
Sharpton became an ordained minister in the Pentecostal church at the age of 10.
FYI, you're still not the messiah, just wrong AGAIN .
Closer than Sharpton.
I know how much you guys just hate to be wrong, but seriously.
Yet, despite these 2 incontrovertible facts, you still want to argue.
Sharpton IS a racist shitstain.
Never claimed I was. I guess you missed that part.
[Deleted]
Why don't we just settle this real quick.
Yes, or no, is Sharpton an ordained minister?
After the Brawly thing, he lost all credibility as a man of God with me.
For me it was the Jenna 6 case.
He makes John Gruden look like a angel with a smudge on a wing, lol.
He is a crappy one for sure, but he is still an ordained minister.
It's a ridiculous request to make. But then again, so was that jury selection.
I have to disagree. Regardless of what this lawyer's personal beliefs are, I know I would view the presence of someone like Sharpton as an attempt at intimidation if I were a juror. I would feel no differently if it were whoever is the leader of an outfit like the Proud Boys. I would view the involvement of any politically active personality that way who didn't have an actual connection to the case beyond their political interest. It would be a distraction from the facts of the case, since the presence of such a person would be taken to mean "I represent a lot of people who think you should decide our way."
As someone on a jury, I would hope I would focus on the facts of the case and the requirements of the law, in spite of my own political views. That is, I would hope my vote in deciding the case would transcend my own views and simply make a judgment according to whatever rule of law applies. That's difficult enough for people to do without a politically charged personality attending the trial for obvious reasons.
A couple of black correspondents on msnbc this morning mentioned that they, along with many white people including myself, have entered unfenced housing construction sites just out of curiosity of what the home looks like. Nothing was damaged or stolen from this site in Georgia. White folk down there are just outraged that a white person house will forever have the stain of being walked on by a black person.
I have. I liked to look at what was being built. How it was laid out etc.
That's a ridiculous comment, housing construction crews have black workers.
That's about as blatantly racist as it gets.
You could see the judge cringe when he said that.
Would love to see Senator Raphael Warnock walk into the courtroom. Black, a pastor and a standing US Senator from Georgia.