(ATLANTA, GA, 11/4/2021) — The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and its Georgia chapter (CAIR-Georgia) today expressed outrage over the racial makeup of the jury in the trial for Ahmaud Arbery’s alleged murder by Travis McMichael, Gregory McMichael and William “Roddie” Bryan.
Despite evidence of intentional bias in the jury selection, the final jury, empaneled on Wednesday, consists of only one Black member and eleven white members. Prosecutors for the state accused defense attorneys of striking qualified Black jurors based on their race and Judge Timothy Walmsley said there was apparent “intentional discrimination” in the jury selection.
SEE: Judge says ‘there appears to be intentional discrimination’ in Arbery jury selection, but allows trial to move forward with 1 Black juror (CNN)
https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/03/us/ahmaud-arbery-jury-what-we-know/index.html
In a statement, Javeria Jamil, CAIR-Georgia’s Legal and Policy Director said:
“It is outrageous that in a case in which racial bias led to the murder of Ahmed Arbery in the first place, the jury consists of only one Black juror. When the judge has already acknowledged the ‘intentional discrimination’ in jury selection, he should take steps to rectify the situation and empanel a new jury.”
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
Become a Fan of CAIR on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/CAIRNational
Subscribe to CAIR’s Email List
https://action.cair.com/a/newsletters
Subscribe to CAIR’s Twitter Feed
http://twitter.com/cairnational
Subscribe to CAIR’s YouTube Channel
Follow CAIR on Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/cair_national/
Donate to CAIR
https://action.cair.com/a/donate
Do you like reading CAIR press releases and taking part in our action alerts? You can help contribute to CAIR’s work of defending civil rights and empowering American Muslims across the country by making a one-time contribution or becoming a monthly donor. Supporters like you make CAIR’s advocacy work possible and defeating Islamophobia an achievable goal. Click here to donate to CAIR.
If you would like to join CAIR’s media list, please sign up here: https://action.cair.com/a/newsletters — For more information, email: info@cair.com, CC ihooper@cair.com.
END
CONTACT: CAIR-Georgia Executive Director Murtaza Khwaja, 770-769-2342 mkhwaja@cair.com; CAIR-Georgia Legal and Policy Director Javeria Jamil, 404-239-2086, j-jamil@cair.com; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com