5-10-2020

Dear Reader,
Hey. I hope you're healthy and doing well.

Today I want to share my opinion with you about the premeditated murder of Ahmaud Arbery by the father and son execution team, Gregory and Travis McMichael.

There's going to be a lot of legal mumbo jumbo being thrown back and forth. Excuses and lies to water down the severity of this case to try and favor the father and son lynch mob. But I'm going to try and keep it simple for you.

The McMichaels are trying to argue it was an attempted citizens arrest. That Arbery committed crimes in that neighborhood and that it was their right to make a citizens arrest.

Now, a citizen is allowed to make a citizens arrest if they witness the crime. In this case, they DID NOT witness any crime. So, they had no right to chase Ahmaud Arbery down in a truck to attempt a citizens arrest.

They saw a black man out jogging. They said he fit the description...? What description? There hasn't been any reports of a crime in the area in over a month.

And they didn't see a crime.

If you haven't seen the video yet, here's what's in it. A black man running. A white pickup chasing him. A man standing up in the back of the truck with a firearm. The driver jumps out with a rifle, pointing it at him. All men are wearing regular clothes. Arbery pushes the end of the rifle away from pointing at him and begins fighting for his life. And gets shot multiple times and died from those wounds.

You've probably seen this scene before in any number of movies that depicted some of the worst tragedies involving racism in our country. And here it is again in 2020.

In all honesty, I don't believe the McMichaels went out planning to kill anyone that day. I do believe they were as aggressive as they were because Mr. Arbury is black and they know that, due to the state of America and that he's a retired cop, they'd get away with it.

Chasing a person down in a truck while carrying a firearm is, at the very least, felony harassment. A person died in the course of that felony. Therefore, it's 1st degree felony murder.

Now, will they be charged with that? Let's analyze that.

The prosecutors office was already reluctant to charge them, which is "most likely" because the father is a retired law enforcement officer. Two prosecutors had to excuse themselves because of that conflict of interest. And they originally cleared them of any wrongdoing, even though they knew the citizens arrest claim was bogus. And they didn't take action until the video was released. And that's because they had no choice but to do something then.

So, will they be charged with 1st degree murder? Probably not. But IF they are, it's even less likely they'll be found guilty of it. A lesser included offense is more likely.

I don't think justice will be had here.

But maybe, just maybe, people are finally fed up with the racism, prejudice, and good ole boy system that a statement will be made on this. Our society needs it.

The one time a law enforcement officer was convicted, that I can recall, it was Officer Geiger (I think that's her name). A woman. It's like the system threw her under the bus to try and appease society's fury about innocent black men being murdered by cops. It's like because it's a woman, they didn't mind her going to prison.

Our country has a serious problem that is only getting worse. Do racist people really want their children to grow up with the anger, hatred, fear and turmoil that comes with that point of view?

We need action, and there's no time like the present.

This case is as clear as it gets. I'm not for the death penalty. But this is clearly murder, and the grand jury should indict them as such.

The anger in me says kill them. But that's the root to our problems: anger. Allowing it to control us. Vengeance is not justice and what we need in this country is justice.

I want these two to be sentenced to prison for life. They chased someone in broad daylight and killed him. It is not difficult to understand what needs to happen now.

Every household needs to watch one episode of the Ellen Degeneres show, every day, to push all the prejudice away. I'm telling you, her show has worked wonders on my death row. After a few months of watching her show, I went from saying "Take it easy, homie" or "Breathe easy, homie" when I'd part ways with someone to "Be kind,homie." There's magic in that show, I'll swear to it.

I hope you remain healthy and well. If you're not, I hope you get well soon! Take care!

Yours truly,
Doug

Happy Mother's Day!

P.S. F.Y.I. Georgia, where this crime happened, is one of four states that doesn't have a hate crime law. They might make one now. Check out this situation online.