SAVANNAH, Ga. — Georgia’s attorney general appointed a black district attorney from the Atlanta area Monday to take over the case of a white father and son charged with killing a black man, making her the third outside prosecutor in a slaying that’s prompted a national outcry over suspicions that race played a role in delaying arrests.

Ahmaud Arbery, 25, was fatally shot Feb. 23 by the men who told police they chased him because they believed he matched the appearance of a burglary suspect caught on surveillance video. Gregory McMichael and his son, Travis McMichael, were arrested last week, more than two months later, after video of the shooting appeared online and provoked outrage. Federal prosecutors are also considering hate crimes charges, the Justice Department said; that would allow for a separate case in federal court.

Cobb County District Attorney Joyette M. Holmes takes over the case from prosecutor Tom Durden, who the state’s attorney general said asked to be replaced by a prosecutor with a large staff as “this case has grown in size and magnitude.” Holmes is based in metro Atlanta, more than 300 miles (480 kilometers) from the coastal Georgia community in Glynn County where the shooting happened.

“District Attorney Holmes is a respected attorney with experience, both as a lawyer and a judge,” state Attorney General Chris Carr, a Republican, said in a statement. “And the Cobb County District Attorney’s office has the resources, personnel and experience to lead this prosecution and ensure justice is done.”

Holmes served four years a magistrate judge in suburban Cobb County before Gov. Brian Kemp appointed her to fill the vacant district attorney’s position last July. According to the Georgia Prosecuting Attorneys Council, Holmes is one of only seven black district attorneys in the state.

An attorney for Arbery’s father, Marcus Arbery, applauded the appointment of a new lead prosecutor.

“In order for justice to be carried out both effectively and appropriately in the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, it is imperative that the special prosecutor has no affiliation with the Southeast Georgia legal or law enforcement communities,” attorney Benjamin Crump said in a statement. He asked that Holmes “be zealous in her search for justice.”

Arbery was hit by three shotgun blasts, according to an autopsy report released Monday by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. One shot grazed his right wrist, and the other two struck him in the chest. Blood tests for various drugs and alcohol all came back negative.

Many have expressed frustration with the investigation, questioning whether the arrests took so long because the suspects are white and the victim black. The killing happened in a subdivision bordered by marsh just outside Brunswick, a working-class port city of about 16,000 that also serves as a gateway to beach resorts on neighboring islands.

The McMichaels weren’t arrested until after the video became public and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation was asked to look into the killing. Gregory McMichael, 64, and Travis McMichael, 34, have been jailed since Thursday on charges of felony murder and aggravated assault.

With courts largely closed because of the coronavirus, getting an indictment needed to try the men on murder charges will take a while longer still. The soonest a grand jury can convene to hear the case will be mid-June.

It was not known Monday whether the McMichaels had attorneys to represent them. They had no lawyers at their first court appearance Friday.

Gregory McMichael is a former Glynn County police officer who later worked 20 years as an investigator for the local district attorney’s office. He retired a year ago.

Glynn County District Attorney Jackie Johnson recused herself from the case because the elder McMichael had worked under her. The first outside prosecutor appointed, District Attorney George Barnhill of the neighboring Waycross Judicial Circuit, stepped aside about a month later because his son works for Johnson as an assistant prosecutor. Durden got the case in mid-April.

Attorneys for Arbery’s parents and others, including Carr and the Southern Poverty Law Center, have asked for a federal investigation to weigh whether hate crimes charges should be brought. Georgia has no hate crime law allowing state charges.

“We are assessing all of the evidence to determine whether federal hate crimes charges are appropriate,” Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said in a statement Monday.

According to Kupec’s statement, the department is also considering Carr’s request for federal authorities to investigate how local police and prosecutors handled the case. She said Carr has been asked to “forward to federal authorities any information that he has.”

The father and son told police they thought Arbery matched the appearance of a burglary suspect who they said had been recorded on a surveillance camera some time before, according to the Glynn County police report filed after the shooting.

Arbery’s mother, Wanda Cooper Jones, has said she thinks her son, a former high school football player, was just jogging in the neighborhood before he was killed.

The leaked video shows a black man running at a jogging pace. A truck is stopped in the road ahead of him, with one white man standing in the pickup’s bed and another beside the open driver’s side door.

The running man attempts to pass the pickup on the passenger side, moving briefly outside the camera’s view. A gunshot sounds, and the video shows the running man grappling with a man over what appears to be a shotgun or rifle. A second shot can be heard, and the running man can be seen punching the other man. A third shot is fired at point-blank range. The running man staggers a few feet and falls face down.

A man who says he recorded the cellphone video of the shooting said he’s received death threats.

William R. Bryan is identified as a witness in the police report taken after Arbery’s shooting. He has not been charged.

“I had nothing to do with it,” Bryan told WJAX-TV in an interview that aired Monday. “I was told I was a witness and I’m not sure what I am, other than receiving a bunch of threats.”

Cantorna said the statement was issued to address questions arising from a civil suit filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Harrisburg by former Penn State football player Isaiah Humphries. He claimed that he was the victim of hazing and harassment, some of it sexually suggestive, by his teammates in 2018, his only year at the university.

ALBANY – The Albany man previously charged with manslaughter and released earlier this month under the recent bail reform statute has now been indicted on a murder charge in the case, Albany County District Attorney’s officials said Monday.

Paul Barbaritano, 52, now faces an upgraded count of second-degree murder in the death of 29-year-old Nicole Jennings, a crime that is not among those included in the automatic release provision of bail reform.

Barbaritano had previously been charged with second-degree manslaughter in Jennings’ July 5 death inside 8 Brevator Street in Albany.

Second-degree manslaughter is one of the charges included in the bail reform statute and Barbaritano was released earlier this month without bail. 

His release has been cited by bail reform opponents as an example of a defendant released under the new law who shouldn’t have been. 

According to CBS6, Barbaritano’s defense contends he did not cause her death. Instead, his defense contends he tried to save her by trying to remove a karate belt she had placed around her own neck. He noticed it was too tight and choking her and he tried to cut it off her, accidentally cutting her.

Officers responded to the address over concerns Barbaritano may harm himself. They arrived to find him with self-inflicted stab wounds and they also found the body of Jennings.

Barbaritano is due to be arraigned on the new murder charge Wednesday in Albany County Court. An Albany County District Attorney’s release did not indicate whether Barbaritano would be taken into custody ahead of the Wednesday court appearance.

Jennings was a graduate of Galway Central High School and previously worked as a housekeeper for the Red Roof Inn in Clifton Park, according to her obituary. She had one son.

Previous, CBS6: Man charged with manslaughter in connection to July stabbing released from jail, Jan. 2, 2020

GREENVILLE, NC (WITN) – Documents from the Los Angeles County District Attorney said there was $20,000 in damages to an apartment building where Zay Jones was arrested earlier this week.

The former ECU football player and current Buffalo Bills player was taken into custody Monday night by L.A. police.

The D.A.’s office says “The case has been declined due to insufficient evidence.”

Jones was arrested Monday night in Los Angeles after officers were sent to 900 South Figueroa Street around 11:20 p.m. their time because a man was breaking glass doors and windows.

He was taken into custody and booked for felony vandalism.

A charge evaluation worksheet from the D.A.’s office says officers were told by Jones’ brother that the man “had become agitated”. Jones was covered in blood, according to police.

The worksheet says the owners of the apartment building didn’t want to press charges, and that Jones’ family had “assumed financial responsibility for the damages.” It says the apartment building would not provide officers with an invoice for the damages.

TMZ released a video of the what happened and it shows Jones struggling with his brother Cayleb, who was reportedly trying to prevent Jones from jumping out of a 30th floor window.

The D.A.’s office says the TMZ video was captured by another resident’s doorbell surveillance camera.

The worksheet ends by saying the case is dismissed “as there is insufficient evidence to prove ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ that the suspect acted with malice and, without victim cooperation, the amount of loss cannot be determined.”

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Previous Story

The Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office says it has completed its investigation into Monday night’s incident involving former ECU football star and current Buffalo Bills player Zay Jones and says no charges will be filed.

The D.A.’S office says “The case has been declined due to insufficient evidence.”

Jones was arrested Monday night in Los Angeles after officers were sent to 900 South Figueroa Street around 11:20 p.m. their time because a man was breaking glass doors and windows.

Jones was taken into custody and booked for felony vandalism.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office investigated resulting in no charges.

TMZ released a video of the what happened and it shows Jones struggling with his brother Cayleb, who was reportedly trying to prevent Jones from jumping out of a 30th floor window.

PREVIOUS STORY:

Buffalo Bills wide receiver and former ECU Pirate Zay Jones was arrested Monday night in Los Angeles.

Jones is now out of jail.

A Los Angeles Police Department spokesman tells WITN News that officers were sent to the 900 South Figueroa Street around 11:20 p.m. their time because a man was breaking glass doors and windows.

LAPD says Jones was taken into custody and booked for felony vandalism.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office says it is asking for additional investigation into the case and they have not formally charged the football player.

Records show that Jones was released from the LA County Jail at 7:45 a.m. eastern time. His next court date is listed for April 11th.

The Buffalo Bills released a statement Tuesday saying “We are aware of the incident involving Zay Jones. We are still in the process of gathering more information on the matter. At this point, we will have no further comment.”

TMZ released a video of the what happened and it shows Jones struggling with his brother Cayleb, who was reportedly trying to prevent Jones from jumping out of a 30th floor window.

Jones was scheduled to come to Greenville this weekend to sign autographs to raise money for Aces for Autism. There’s no word yet on the status of that event.

Staff Reports

UPDATE at 11:50 a.m.: District Attorney Greg Newman has announced that he has dismissed the simple assault charge filed against West Henderson High men’s basketball coach Joey Bryson.

The charge was initiated by a student who plays basketball at North Henderson following the high school basketball game at West Henderson on Dec. 15.

West Henderson won the game against North in overtime. Following the game, the North student and his mother went to the magistrate’s office and the criminal charge was issued against Bryson. A court date of Jan. 26 was scheduled.

“I will not prosecute cases against teachers that have not been properly and thoroughly vetted by law enforcement,” Newman said in a news release. “I reviewed video footage of the reported incident and I saw no evidence of any crime being committed by Coach Bryson. What I saw was that Coach Bryson was conferring with one of his players while a foul shot was taking place. The North Henderson player encroached upon their space and the coach flung the hand of the North player away.

“The charging document issued by the magistrate accused the coach of ‘pushing’ the player. I did not see any evidence of pushing. Contact was definitely made by the coach, but it does not rise to any type of criminal action,” said Newman.

The District Attorney went on to say that “there were at least two sheriff’s deputies at the game who did not believe that any crime had occurred. They were engaged with removing an irate fan from the center of the basketball court. Also, I find it significant that the referees did not call a technical foul on the West Henderson coach or bench.”

The DA added that he has explained his decision to the complainant’s mother and that the matter is under review by the school superintendent.

Associate Superintendent for Administrative Services John Bryant said today the school system has completed its investigation into the matter and the issues presented have been addressed. Bryant said Bryson will continue to be the West Henderson’s coach. 

Charges dropped against West coach Joey Bryson

Charges have been dropped against West Henderson High varsity boys basketball coach Joey Bryson.

Last month, Bryson was charged with misdemeanor simple assault by a parent of a North Henderson High boys’ basketball player.

“It is my understanding that the DA’s office did dismiss the charges against Mr. Bryson during the first week of January,” Henderson County Public Schools Associate Superintendent for Administrative Services John Bryant said.

The Times-News will update this story as more information comes in.