Ahmaud Arbery’s family filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday over his death, saying that the men who allegedly killed the 25-year-old violated his civil rights and that those who were part of the case engaged in a conspiracy to hide his murder.
Tuesday marked the one-year anniversary of Arbery’s death, timing his family’s lawyer, Lee Merritt, said is symbolic.
“We wanted to let the [family] know that the community, their attorneys, the legal system is still going to be held accountable and that we’re still fighting for them a year later,” Merritt told First Coast News, a Florida station.
NEW BODYCAM FOOTAGE OF AHMAUD ARBERY’S DEATH CONTRADICTS NEIGHBOR’S ACCOUNT OF WHAT TOOK PLACE
The complaint, which seeks over $1 million in damages, accuses members of the Glynn County Police Department and two local prosecutors of being part of a “deliberate effort to cover up Ahmaud’s murder,” according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The suit claims that a cover-up began once officers arrived at the scene of Arbery’s death, which he succumbed to after he was shot three times by Travis McMichael, who is accused of chasing Arbery down with his father, Greg McMichael, a retired investigator with the Brunswick district attorney’s office.
“For nearly three months, Glynn County police officers, the chief of police, and two prosecutors conspired to hide the circumstances surrounding Ahmaud’s death and to protect the men who murdered him,” the complaint stated.
Merritt is asking the court to hold all responsible parties named liable for Arbery’s death, including the McMichaels, the Glynn County Police Department, and William “Roddie” Bryan Jr., the McMichaels’ neighbor who allegedly used his vehicle to trap Arbery. Bryan recorded the video of the shooting, which went viral.
Arbery, who is black, was shot to death on Feb. 23, 2020, after he was allegedly confronted by the McMichaels, two white men who claimed at the time that they were trying to conduct a citizen’s arrest because they believed Arbery was involved in a series of local robberies.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Prosecutors said there was no evidence that Arbery, who was unarmed when he was shot, stole anything when the McMichaels and Bryan allegedly chased him down in a Brunswick, Georgia, neighborhood.
The McMichaels and Bryan were indicted by a grand jury that charged them with nine counts, including malice murder, four counts of felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault, false imprisonment, and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment.
All three men have pleaded not guilty to felony murder charges. They are in custody, awaiting trial.