Ahmaud Arbery Trial: Prosecutor Says Black Jogger Was Killed 'Based on Assumptions' of 3 Suspects Who Had 'Intent to Kill'

The prosecutors in Georgia have shown the full footage of the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery during the trial of three white men accused of his murder.

BBC reported that the prosecutors in the case argued that the 25-year-old Black jogger was attacked by the three men who allegedly pursued him because of racial bias.

On the opening day of arguments on Friday, the court was shown a video from the first police officer on the scene. Defendants Gregory McMichael, 65; his son Travis McMichael, 35; and William "Roddie" Bryan Jr., 52, denied all the charges and said they only acted in self-defense.

Prosecutor Says Ahmaud Arbery's Death Was Based on Assumptions

According to Aljazeera, prosecutor Linda Dunikoski said in her opening statement that the suspects had no reason to follow Ahmaud Arbery or even to suspect him of any wrongdoing when they chased him in their neighborhood in Brunswick.

Dunikoski noted that the three white men only assumed that Arbery must have committed a crime that day. She said the suspects have no evidence that Arbery had done anything wrong.

She noted that the only thing that Arbery did was to run away from these "total strangers, who had already told him that they would kill him and then they killed him." Dunikoski said Arbery was "under attack" by the three men "with the intent to kill him."

However, lawyers for the three suspects described Arbery as an "intruder" and said their clients had probable cause to suspect the victim that he had committed a crime.

Travis' lawyer Robert Rubin said his client was acting in self-defense as Arbery reached for his shotgun. Rubin said Travis, who shot Arbery three times, has no choice but not to let Arbery gets his gun because "he's dead or his dad's dead."

A leaked video showing the killing of Arbery last year sparked outrage across the U.S., fuelling the racial justice protests in connection with the murder of George Floyd, another Black man who died in the hands of a cop. The video footage of the incident was played on Friday in the courtroom.

The Death of Ahmaud Arbery

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation took over the investigation months after the video leaked. Authorities eventually arrested the three suspects and were charged with murder.

Ahmaud Arbery was fatally shot and killed while out for a jog in Brunswick City on February 23, 2020. He was accused of being one of the burglars in a series of local break-ins.

Reports said Gregory and Travis, armed with guns, confronted Arbery, prompting him to run. Arbery ran past the truck of another suspect, Bryan, who struck the victim with the side of his vehicle.

After seeing the McMichaels pursuing Arbery in a pick-up truck, Bryan joined the chase. Eventually, the three men caught up with Ahmaud Arbery, and three shots were fired. The McMichaels were arrested and charged with murder and aggravated assault in May 2020.

Bryan, who has recorded the killing, has been charged with felony murder and a criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment. The three suspects pleaded not guilty to federal hate crime charges last May.

The assembly of a 12-member jury that will decide the outcome of the case was finalized on Wednesday. However, the prosecution questioned the composition of the jury because it only included one Black person.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Jess Smith

WATCH: Takeaways from 1st day of Ahmaud Arbery murder trial - From ABC News