The more information that comes out of this incident, the more troubling it gets.
For those not following this killing, this is the killing of a black male in his twenties in the state of Georgia.
A father-son duo took it upon themselves to confront, chase this man down and kill him after they deemed this man as a "burglary" suspect.
Without knowing specifics about Arbery, it almost sounds like he was either with mental illness or of with some sort of reduced mental capacity. Which is sad because he may have been known to the neighborhood as more of a simpleton than a master burglar.
There is video of the b/m believed to be Arbery entering a house under construction, leaving and then being basically hunted down by this duo. The duo and proponents of the duo (included recused prosecutors) state they are covered by a "citizen's arrest" law in Georgia.
Now, keep in mind - Arbery most likely committed something like criminal trespass or maybe, just maybe, attempted burglary (though for those, both would require an element of him committing a crime while on the property).
Now, here are the things that are troubling to me: first, this Georgia " citizen's arrest" law apparently gives more power to citizens than sworn police officers. To further illustrate, sworn law enforcement is bound by Tennesse V. Garner when it comes to the use of deadly force. And if police officers had done what these two have done, most likely it would have resulted in FEDERAL criminal civil rights charges.
Law enforcement can't simply use deadly force on fleeing felons. You have to be able to articulate a person is a threat/continued threat and typically armed before you can use deadly force. Law enforcement can't simply shoot a fleeing suspect because he or she is fleeing.
Next, if one thinks of this case, is this case not an example of "stand your ground" laws FOR Arbery?
I believe "stand your ground" laws more or less state that if you, your property or safety are being encroached upon, you have the right to defend yourself. Arbery is trying to get away from these two people and is pursued with no true evidence of him committing a crime. These two are the encroachers and to me, it's probably common sense that Arbery thought his own life was in danger.
Next, it is very, very common for law enforcement personnel to be told, when off duty and witnessing a suspicious incident to become the best WITNESS, UNLESS serious injury or death may occur if intervention does not happen immediately. The father in this incident was former law enforcement, so he KNOWS this, but ignored it.
Supposedly, these two KNEW Arbery and you can see he is not armed in the video and he is clearly not a threat to anyone. So let him go, be a witness and tell authorities what one saw, eh?
Next, there is prosecutorial behavior. Jesus. If this case does not show a need to do something about prosecutorial immunity, I don't know what does. How the first prosecutor completely dumped this case is unbelievable.
Then, for the sickening "cover your ass" letter by the district attorney pointing back at the police and claiming that the police can arrest anyone they want, blah, blah, blah. Well, when it comes to cases like this, it is almost rote for a law enforcement agency to contact prosecutors and say to them, "this is what we have, is there enough to arrest/and or charge?" Then, the agency will pretty much follow the words of the prosecuting agency. So for her to say it was the police agency's fault, that is horseshit.
On top of that, it took 70 some days for this to emerge and that is most likely because of the video.
Lastly, if this incident is not proof of why groups like Black Lives Matter came to be or why groups like that are needed, then white America is really clueless.
Is there anyone willing to suggest if the racial roles were reversed and this happened in Harlem, that this story would not have been covered nationwide from day one? Imagine if some goofy white male interested in urban architecture was looking around old buildings in Harlem and was chased down by two black males and shot like Arbery because they thought him to be suspicious? FauxNews would be exploding and white America would screaming injustice all the way to the bank.
