Georgia revises law on “arrest of citizens” after murder of Ahmaud Arbery | Georgia

Georgian lawmakers have approved a bill that would overhaul the law on arresting state citizens, overturning a civil war-era statute a year after Ahmaud Arbery’s murder.

State Governor Brian Kemp is expected to sign the bill, which would make Georgia the first state to move towards repealing the arrest status of citizens. Georgia’s Citizen Arrest Act, which was enacted in 1863 to allow white citizens to capture slaves fleeing the north, and was later used to justify hundreds of lynchings, was cited by a prosecutor in the year last who initially refused to arrest the assailants of Arbery.

Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, was jogging when he was chased and then shot by three white men. His pursuers said they suspected him of theft.

The bill approved on Wednesday would strike the arrest of citizens out of state law, but still allow security guards, private investigators and off-duty officers to detain someone they believe has committed a crime. Kemp called these latter provisions a “critical balance”.

“I look forward to signing it into law as we continue to send a clear message that the State of Peach will not tolerate sinister acts of vigilance in our communities,” Kemp said in a statement.

Civil rights activists celebrated the passage of the bill and are pushing for similar reforms in other states. All 50 states have some form of citizen arrest status.

Republicans have sided with Democrats in supporting the bill, but critics say the state’s Republican support for the bill serves to mask recent measures by lawmakers to severely restrict access to the vote and to limit the voting capacity of black citizens.

Carl Gilliard, a Democrat who had long pushed for the repeal of the 1863 law, called it “outdated and outdated,” saying it was steeped in racism.

The Rev. James Woodall, president of the Georgia NAACP, called the repeal of the law “a monumental moment in Georgia’s history.”

The father and son who pursued Arbery – Greg and Travis McMichael – were not arrested or charged until more than two months after Arbery’s death. The McMichaels have since been charged with murder. They remain in jail without bail.