SAVANNAH, Ga. — Just over an hour after his son fatally shot Ahmaud Arbery in their neighborhood, Greg McMichael reached out for assistance from his previous employer, the district attorney of the area. In a voicemail to District Attorney Jackie Johnson, he stated, “My son and I have been involved in a shooting, and I need some advice immediately.”
This tragic event, captured on video, would eventually lead to legal action against Greg McMichael, his son Travis McMichael, and their neighbor, William “Roddie” Bryan. All three white men had used their vehicles and firearms in an attempt to corner the 25-year-old Black jogger, resulting in their conviction and subsequent life sentences for murder and federal hate crimes. Notably, the trio managed to avoid arrest for over two months, during which time Greg McMichael kept in close contact with Johnson, as court documents reveal.
Nearly five years later, Johnson faces trial on charges of abusing her position to obstruct the investigation into Arbery’s death. Jury selection is set to commence on Tuesday in Brunswick, located about 70 miles south of Savannah.
Ahmaud Arbery was a regular jogger and often ran through the Satilla Shores neighborhood in Glynn County, which was less than two miles from his residence. On February 23, 2020, during one of his runs, the McMichaels armed themselves and pursued him. Bryan joined the chase, capturing footage of the confrontation, which showed Travis McMichael shooting Arbery at close range during a struggle over the shotgun. Following the incident, police discovered that Arbery was unarmed and had no stolen items. Despite this, authorities initially allowed the men to go home, relying on Greg McMichael’s assertion that they believed Arbery was burglarizing a nearby construction site and that Travis fired his weapon in self-defense.
The case gained national attention after Bryan’s footage was leaked online two months later, fueling public outrage amidst a broader examination of racial injustice following the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor in 2020. As a result, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation took over the case from local authorities, leading to the swift arrest of the McMichaels, followed by Bryan’s arrest two weeks later.
Jackie Johnson had served as the district attorney for the Brunswick Judicial Circuit for a decade by the time of Arbery’s death. Greg McMichael had previously worked as an investigator in her office before retiring. Due to their connection, Johnson claims she promptly recused her office from the investigation, and an outside prosecutor, George Barnhill, was appointed. Barnhill later determined that the McMichaels’ actions were legally justified and that the shooting was defensive in nature.
In May 2020, following the McMichaels’ arrests, Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr initiated an investigation into the handling of the case. Carr had appointed Barnhill based on Johnson’s recommendation, but he later discovered that Barnhill had previously advised law enforcement that the shooting was not a criminal act. After losing her position in the 2020 election, Johnson attributed her defeat to the controversy surrounding the case, maintaining her innocence.
In September 2021, Johnson was indicted by a grand jury, which led to her status as a defendant in a criminal case. The charges against her include violating her oath of office, a felony that carries a penalty of one to five years, as well as a misdemeanor charge for hindering police investigations by instructing that Travis McMichael should not be arrested. Johnson has denied that anyone in her office instructed police not to arrest the suspects. Her attorney has argued that she was preoccupied with a different significant case and was unaware of the developments regarding Arbery’s death.
The prosecution’s case is expected to reveal details about 16 phone calls exchanged between Greg McMichael and Johnson in the period following the incident, although much of the trial’s evidence remains undisclosed.
To ensure an impartial jury, more than the usual number of jury duty notices were sent out, reaching 500 residents. On Tuesday, potential jurors will be questioned about their knowledge of the case, and it may take a week or longer to finalize a jury of 12, along with alternates.
The trial’s lengthy timeline, spanning three years and four months, can be attributed in part to the extensive defense efforts made by Johnson’s attorney, Brian Steel, who spent nearly two years representing rapper Young Thug in a complex legal matter. After the rapper accepted a plea deal at the end of October, Johnson was ordered to appear in court and her trial was scheduled for January.
