In rare move, U.S. judge rejects plea agreement by Ahmaud Arbery's murderer

A U.S. judge in Georgia rejected a plea agreement reached between federal prosecutors and one of the three white men convicted of murdering Ahmaud Arbery, saying she was not willing to be bound to the 30-year federal prison sentence outlined in the agreement.

A U.S. judge in Georgia rejected a plea agreement reached between federal prosecutors and one of the three white men convicted of murdering Ahmaud Arbery, saying she was not willing to be bound to the 30-year federal prison sentence outlined in the agreement. The decision by U.S. District Judge Lisa Wood came after Travis McMichael admitted for the first time he had pursued the 25-year-old Black man because of his race.

Judges rarely reject plea agreements. Rejections can occur if judges believe the agreements do not adequately address the nature of the crimes, the rights of victims, or the interests of the public. McMichael was attempting to change his plea to guilty in the U.S. District Court in Brunswick, Georgia, to using a gun in his attempt to apprehend Arbery because of his "race and color," resulting in Arbery's death.

His father, Gregory McMichael, had also been due to plead guilty as part of an agreement at a subsequent hearing on Monday. The McMichaels were convicted of murder last November in a state court in Brunswick alongside their neighbor William "Roddie" Bryan.