The 3 defendants in Ahmaud Arbery‘s murder will face a judge in a preliminary hearing to determine whether there’s enough evidence to move forward with the case … and TMZ will be streaming live.
The attorneys for Gregory McMichael, Travis McMichael and William “Roddie” Bryan Jr. are slated to appear at Glynn County Magistrate Court in Georgia … nearly a month after the McMichaels were arrested for murder and denied bond and 13 days after Bryan, who recorded the deadly encounter, was arrested.
The alleged murderers will appear in court via teleconference. All 3 have been charged with murder in the February 23 death of Arbery, who was simply jogging down the street when he was stopped and confronted by the McMichaels. A struggle ensued and Travis shot Arbery. He fell to the ground and died.
Travis and Gregory were arrested for murder May 8. They later faced a judge and were denied bond. Bryan, who recorded the incident, was arrested 14-days later and was slapped with charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment.
As we reported … authorities allege Bryan “did attempt to confine and detain Ahmaud Arbery without legal authority, by attempting to confine …” adding, Bryan was “utilizing his vehicle on multiple occasions during the above time frame, with the intention of confining and detaining Arbery.”
So, the felony is false imprisonment, and if such a felony results in someone’s death, that person can be charged with felony murder.
Bryan has claimed he was simply a witness and had no involvement in the killing. He also said he feared for his life after the video was leaked. The handling of the case has drawn scrutiny — with good reason — prompting the Georgia Attorney General to formally request the Justice Department get to the bottom of what happened.
We’re also told bail may become a bone of contention.
The hearing is set to begin at 6:30 AM PT.