TONIGHT AT 11 REPORTING LIVE IN BRUNSWICK, RENEE BENENATI CHANNEL 4, THE LOCAL STATION.
>>KENT JUSTICE: THANK YOU,
RENAY. WERE JURORS MUST DECIDE
WHETHER ONE OR ALL 3 OF THE
MEN ARE GUILTY OF MURDER AND 9
COUNT INDICTMENT CHARGES. ALL
3 MEN WITH ONE COUNT OF MALICE
MURDER.
>>MARY BAER: 4 COUNTS OF
FELONY MURDER. 2 COUNTS,
AGGRAVATED ASSAULT, ONE COUNT
OF FALSE IMPRISONMENT. AND ONE
COUNT OF CRIMINAL ATTEMPT TO
COMMIT FALSE IMPRISONMENT.
>>KENT JUSTICE: AND LOCAL
ATTORNEY AND LEGAL ANALYST
GENE NICHOLS IS HERE WITH US
TO HELP BETTER UNDERSTAND THE
CHARGES IN THIS JEANNE, IF YOU
HELP US, I MAYBE UNDERSTAND
THE DIFFERENCE BECAUSE SOUNDS
A LITTLE DIFFERENT IN GEORGIA
AS WELL. THIS MALICE MURDER
VERSUS FELONY MURDER.
ABSOLUTELY. SO CAN’T. WHAT HOW
GEORGE IS DIFFERENT IS THAT
HERE IN FLORIDA WE HAVE FIRST
DEGREE SECOND DEGREE AND
THAT’S WHAT WE’VE ALWAYS HEARD
IN GEORGIA BASE. FIRST, START
WITH WHAT THEY CALL MALICE
MURDER MALICE MURDER IS GOING
TO CHALLENGE WHETHER OR NOT
SOMEBODY COMMITTED THE CRIME
WITH INTENT. IF THEY DIDN’T
COMMIT THE CRIME WITH INTENT,
IF THEY DID IT WITH SORT OF A
DIP RAVE INDIFFERENCE OF
HEART, THEN THEY CAN BE
CHARGED WITH MALICE MURDER.
AND IT’S SIMILAR TO REALLY OUR
SECOND DEGREE. IT DOES NOT
HAVE TO HAVE PREMEDITATION IS
ON. IT WAS AN INTENT TO COMMIT
A MURDER. THEN THEY’RE GOING
TO BE THEY CAN BE FOUND GUILTY
OF MALICE MURDER. WHAT WE HAVE
IN THIS CASE, WE THEN HAVE
FELONY MURDER IN FELONY
MURDER. WHAT HAPPENS IS IF
THERE WAS A DEATH DURING THE
COMMISSION OF A CERTAIN
FELONY, THEN YOU CAN BE FOUND
GUILTY OF FELONY MURDER. IN
THIS CASE, THE GOVERNMENT HAS
CHARGED THESE GENTLEMEN WITH 4
DIFFERENT FELONIES. WE KNOW
THAT WE HAVE THE CRIME OF
FALSE IMPRISONMENT. WE KNOW WE
HAVE AN ATTEMPT TO FALSE
IMPRISONMENT. WE KNOW WE HAVE
AN AGGRAVATED ASSAULT AND THEN
OTHER AGGRAVATED ASSAULT. ONE
IS USING THE CAR, THE OTHERS
USING A GUN. IF THEY’RE FOUND
GUILTY OF THOSE FELONIES. AND
THE JURY DETERMINES THAT THERE
WAS A DEATH INVOLVED WITH
THOSE AND THEN THEY CAN BE
CHARGED WITH FELONY MURDER.
CONVICTED A FELONY MURDER. SO
AGAIN, YOU HAVE THE MALICE
MURDER. THEN YOU HAVE THE 4
FELONIES AND THEN THE 4 FELONY
MURDER CHARGES AND THERE ARE
5.
>>MARY BAER: MURDER COUNTS.
BUT AGAIN, ONLY ONE PERSON
DIED. SO CAN YOU EXPLAIN THAT
TO US RIGHT TO AGAIN? WHAT WE
HAVE IS YOU HAVE THE MALICE
MURDER AND THEN YOU HAVE THE 4
FELONY MURDERS. SO THERE’S A
DETERMINATION THAT ONE OF THE
FELONIES WAS COMMITTED.
>>KENT JUSTICE: LET’S
AGGRAVATED ASSAULT, POINTING
THE GUN AND AHMAD ARBERY DIED
DURING THE COMMISSION OF THAT
CRIME. THEN THEY CAN BE FOUND
GUILTY OF FELONY MURDER WHEN
IT’S ALL SAID AND DONE. IF
THEY ARE FOUND GUILTY OF
MULTIPLE MURDERS, THEY WILL
MERGE THEM TOGETHER INTO ONE
SENATE, BUT THEY CAN BE FOUND
GUILTY OF MULTIPLE MURDERS
BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENT
FELONIES THAT WERE COMMITTED.
GENIUSES ARE. AND AS WE TALK
TO A HEAD OF OUR CHANCE TO
INTERVIEW YOU HEAR, HOW DOES
THE FALSE IMPRISONMENT CHARGE
PLAY INTO THIS?
>>MARY BAER: AND I THINK
SPECIFICALLY, HOW DOES THIS
WAY INTO THAT 3RD PERSON WHO
IS INVOLVED HERE, WILLIAM
RODDIE BRYAN. SO ON THE FALSE
IMPRISONMENT, WHEN YOU SEE THE
VEHICLES TURN AND STOP HIM AND
THEN SUBSEQUENTLY WHEN THEY
DETAINED HIM FOR NO LAWFUL
REASON. THAT’S THE ARGUMENT
ANYWAY OF THE GOVERNMENT. AND
THAT’S WHERE THE FALSE
IMPRISONMENT, THE PLATE. AND
SO THE QUESTION BECOMES IN
GEORGIA AS WELL IN FLORIDA. IF
YOU WERE A PART OF THE
COMMISSION OF A CRIME WITH
SOMEBODY ELSE, IF THE 3 OF US
WHEN COMMITTED A CRIME. BUT
I’M THE ONE WAITING OUTSIDE
AND YOU, TOO, WENT INSIDE.
THEN I CAN BE WE WILL ALL BE
PART OF THAT CRIME SCENE. YOU
JUST CAN’T RUN AWAY FROM BEING
A PART OF THE CRIME. EVEN IF
YOU’RE IN THE SECOND CAR. SO
IN THIS SITUATION, THE
GOVERNMENT IS PROSECUTING THEM
ALL FOR THE SAME SET OF FACTS
SAYING THAT RODDIE BRYAN, EVEN
THOUGH HE WAS IN A SEPARATE
CAR IS PART OF THE COMMISSION
OF THIS CRIME. SO THEREFORE,
HE IS GUILTY IS THE OTHERS.
AND AND EVEN IF HE DIDN’T PULL
THE TRIGGER HERE, THAT TOOK
SOMEBODY IS LIVE. HE’S CHARGED
WITH THIS MURDER BECAUSE HE
WAS PART OF THAT. DEATH DURING
A FELONY. THAT THAT’S EXACTLY
RIGHT. HE IS A PART OF THE
ENTIRE INCIDENT THAT HAPPENED
AND THAT’S WHAT THE ARGUMENT
IS. THE DEFENSE, OF COURSE, IS
ARGUED HE’S NOT. THE DEFENSE
IS TRYING TO SEPARATE HIM FROM
WHEN THE MCMICHAELS DID IN
TRYING TO ARGUE THAT HE WAS
NOT A PART. THE COMMISSION OF
THE FELONIES THAT HE DID NOT
KNOW THAT THE MCMICHAELS HAD A
GUN, THAT HE DID NOT KNOW THE
MCMICHAELS WERE GOING TO DO
WHAT THEY DID. SO THAT’S HOW
HE’S TRYING TO GET HIMSELF OUT
OF A MURDER CHARGE.
>>JOY PURDY: THE DEFENSE HAS
ALSO SAID THAT ARE VERY HAD
COMMITTED A BURGLARY. WE HEAR
THAT OVER AND OVER. BUT WAS
THERE ANY EVIDENCE?
>> THAT THAT CRIME HAD BEEN
COMMITTED TO NOBODY SEEM TO
PRESENT ANY DURING THIS TRIAL.
SO WHERE THEY ARE TRYING TO
ARGUE THAT THE BURGLARY IS
THAT IF THESE DEFENDANTS WE’RE
STOPPING AHMAD ARBERY, THEY
HAVE THE RIGHT UNDER GEORGIA
LAW AT THAT TIME TO DETAIN HIM
IF THEY HIT SEEN HIM COMMIT A
FELONY. SO THE ARGUMENT IS
THAT HE WAS COMMITTING A
BURGLARY. HOWEVER, THERE’S NO
EVIDENCE THAT’S BEEN PRESENTED
THAT HE WAS COMMITTING A
BURGLARY. THERE HAVE BEEN
PLENTY OF INFERENCES THAT HE
DID. BUT IN IN FRANCE IS NOT
EVIDENT. AND THAT’S WHAT THE
GOVERNMENT ARGUED SO STRONGLY
IN THEIR CLOSING AND NO
TRESPASSING, EVEN THOUGH HE
HAD HE’S BEEN SEEN ON VIDEO
GOING INTO THE HOME.
>> SHE WAS TRYING TO SAY THAT
HE WAS COMMITTING BURGLARY.
BUT BUT YOU THINK OF MY BEEN
TRESPASSING, GET IN EVEN WITH
THE TRESPASS. THE GEORGIA LAW,
WHICH HAS SUBSEQUENTLY BEEN
THROWN OUT BY THE LEGISLATURE,
SAID THAT THEY HAD TO BE
COMMITTING A FELONY IN
SOMEBODYS IN THIS SITUATION
THAT IT HAS TO BE A BURGLARY
FOR THEM TO BE ABLE TO USE THE
STATUTE THAT SAYS THAT THEY
WERE TRYING TO MAKE A CITIZENS
ARREST. THE CITIZENS ARREST
GOES OUT THE WINDOW. IF THEY
DON’T PROVE ARE VERY WAS
COMMITTING A FELONY IN THAT
NEIGHBORHOOD AND THAT THEY SAW