5:30 PM: Prosecutor Linda Dunikoski contends lawyers for the defendants cherry-picked the jury with racial bias. She says that there were 12 Black people in the jury pool, and the defense used 11 of its 24 strikes to take all but one of them out. The panel as currently selected has 11 white people.
“The actual jury that was selected has one African American male on it,” she said.
The State laid out its prima facie case--essentially, here’s what it looks like on its face. The judge allowed them to delve more deeply into it. But after Dunikoski listed the jurors whose ouster she was questioning, defense attorney Laura Hogue spelled out “race-neutral” reasons for why they’d struck them. Dunikoski countered that they were largely using voir dire comments which the Court had already ruled were not reason to strike them from the pool. The defense also mentioned a juror who’d gotten in trouble on a previous job for lying on his time sheet, or clocking in at one job while working another. They contend it’s evidence of his dishonesty. The State pointed out that it wasn’t something they’d had the chance to ask him about during voir dire so they can’t contend he’s dishonest based on the fact that he didn’t volunteer that info.
Judge Walmsley says ultimately, the Court is essentially being asked to determine that the defense is being disingenuous for their reasons for striking 11 of the only 12 Black jurors.
After consideration, the judge returned to the bench.
“This Court has found that there appears to be intentional discrimination on the panel,” said Judge Walmsley. But he also conceded that the defense was able to give convincing enough arguments to provide legal cover for their strikes, so they will stand.
Ahmaud Arbery’s mother said outside the Glynn County courthouse that it’s “devastating” that there’s only one Black person on the jury, but she’s hopeful that they will convict once they weigh the evidence. She said it was hard to see the Black jurors questioned so harshly during jury selection by the defense team.
3:15 PM: Looks like they are done striking the jury. We’re in a brief break. Follow my tweet updates online! https://twitter.com/MissVWaters
1:00 PM: The silent strikes of jury selection continue with the second panel of the day.
11:30 AM: After two days in a row of repeated hammering, Kevin Gough gets his wish to re-question Juror 219. He’s railed about what he says are 10 TikTok videos posted in May and June of 2020 in tribute to Ahmaud Arbery and repeatedly claims it shows some emotional connection to him. The State pointed out that she’s a dancer and that nothing had been posted on the subject since 2020, but the judge acquiesced and allowed “limited” questioning of her.
Afterward, the judge indicated that he’d seen Juror 219 being “worn down” by the confrontational nature, and reminded lawyers again how inappropriate it is for them to voir dire jurors as if they’re under cross-examination. He said he was excusing her from the pool, but not because of her answers. He indicated that to be candid, he’s concerned that she’d now be so frustrated with the defense that it would affect her at the trial.
10:30 AM: Here is a thread of what this morning’s arguments were all about. They still haven’t started striking a jury.
Lead prosecutor Linda Dunikoski addressed Gough’s concerns about “Bubbas” in the jury pool by detailing the jury pool’s makeup. The first two panels, 48 jurors, have a total of nine white men over 40--19% of the panel. The jury panel has in total 19 men, 29 women. Thirty-six are white, 12 are Black. Black men are just 6 of the jury pool, only 12%, she says.
Kevin Gough said he was sitting on the severance motion to possibly ask for Bryan to be tried separately, but said they were now in a position of “antagonistic” jury selection between Bryan and the McMichaels.
9:25 AM: Everyone was gathered for the final day of jury selection in the Ahmad Arbery shooting case, but then there was an unexpected delay.
The first panel of 24 was in place with other jurors spaced out for COVID-safe social distancing in various rooms, when everyone was escorted out and were told they were changing rooms.
The judge took the bench about a minute ago.