Ahmad Arbery is at a crossroads, his life stretches in front of him, his troubles are basically behind him

The jury considers the murderer's fate in the Ahmed Abery case

Brunswick, Georgia-He is at a crossroads, his life stretches before him, and most of his troubles are behind him. He attended South Georgia Institute of Technology and was about to become an electrician, just like his uncle. But first, he decided that he would take a break. The university can wait until autumn.

In order to keep his head clear, he runs almost every day. He would leave the door of his mother's house and walk along the long street towards Fancy Bluff Road. Then turn right into a two-lane road with oak trees covered with Spanish moss on both sides of the two-lane road.

Ahmad Arbery will cross the four lanes of the Jekyll Island Causeway about a mile and a half on his usual route into the subdivision of the Satira Coast.

On February 23, 2020, when he was only 25 years old, he ran through Satilla Shores for the last time.

On that day, Abery was shot and killed by a father and son. They told the police that they picked up the gun and chased him with a pickup truck because they believed he was responsible for the intrusion near them-a black man was killed. A white man was killed.

Three months later, on the lawn of a house near the place where he died, a flower memorial was temporarily erected with a plaque on it that read: “It’s hard to forget that one who gave us so many memorable people ."

Editor's note: The Associated Press originally released a version of Ahmaud Arbery's profile on May 25, 2020.

Before Arbery's name was added to a series of labels with the names of young black men, he was a thin child and his NFL career dream did not come true. Those who know him say that the kindness he uses to encourage others seems bottomless, and a relaxed smile and contagious laughter can alleviate almost any situation.

They also admitted to legal issues after high school graduation-in 2013, a year after graduation, they were sentenced to five years probation for bringing a gun into the high school campus, and for shoplifting in a Wal-Mart store in 2017, this charge extended the probation period Until the time of his death.

Many people close to him told the Associated Press that in his last few months on Earth, Abery seemed to feel that he was on the verge of a personal and professional breakthrough, especially because his probation might end that year. .

His mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones (Wanda Cooper-Jones) admitted that he was a young man living at home, like many of his contemporaries, taking a breath to describe how he would support himself one day.

She has a rule: "If you have the energy to run the road, you need to be at work."

So he worked in his father's car wash and landscaping company, and previously worked at McDonald's.

Ahmaud Marquez Arbery was born on May 8, 1994, the youngest of three children, nicknamed "Maud" and "Quez".

When he was a teenager, he obviously stayed at home, so much so that his family worried that he would never want to go out with friends. "I thought at the time that he would eventually be on the stage," Cooper-Jones said. "He was mom's child in the beginning."

As his mother predicted, when Arbery entered Brunswick High School's class in 2012, this reserve was left behind.

He got tips from his brother Marcus Jr. and tried out for the Brunswick Buccaneers football team. His former coach and American history teacher Jason Vaughn said that his slender figure certainly did not make him a linebacker for the junior school team.

"As soon as the practice started, Ahmaud really started, oh my goodness, his speed was so amazing," Vaughan recalled with a smile. "He is short in stature, but he has a big heart."

Vaughan said that on the sidelines, Ahmed has the talent to elevate the spirit of the people around him, and he likes to imitate his coach.

"If I stand in the hallway and look a little bit mean, or have a bad day—maybe my lesson plan is incorrect—Maud may feel this to me," Vaughan said. "He would stand next to me and say,'I am Coach Vaughan today. You continue to class. Hurry up! Don't be late! Don't be late! This is what I like about him. He always tries to make people smile."

"Some students find it hard to be angry," he said, "because you love them so much."

At the end of his last football season, no college recruiter tried to attract the No. 21 player. But Abery's high school football career still ended in a high profile, his mother remembered.

In his last game, he intercepted the pass and ran it back for a touchdown. A referee raised the flag during the game, but his mother insisted that his achievements are still important: "I said,'Guess what, son? You did it!' He was very, very excited about it. That's for us. It was a very good moment."

Former teammate Demetrius Frazier grew up across the street from Arberys, and his friendship with Ahmaud can be traced back to their days in the local pee football project.

Fraser cherishes the quiet time in high school-only two friends are playing video games, playing basketball, and gobbled up peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, hot dogs and French fries.

Fraser said that that was when his friend seemed happiest, and his legal problems later got him into trouble.

Fraser continues to serve as a wide receiver for the Middle Tennessee State University football team, and now works as an office, raising a son in Darien near Georgia.

Fraser said that Abery's own football ambitions have been shattered, but his desire for himself is still high.

"Ahmed just got ready to put himself in the life he wants," he said. "This is what they took from him."

Less than two weeks before Arbery's death, 34-year-old Travis McMichael called 911 to report that someone might have broken into a house under construction in the community, calling him "a black male wearing a red shirt and white shorts." He also said that he was afraid that this man was armed.

Lawyers for the Arbery family confirmed that Ahmaud was captured by security cameras entering the home on the day he was killed. The owner stated that it did not appear to have been stolen, but the surveillance video also showed that other people entered and exited the site on other days, some of whom were apparently to fetch water.

Travis McMichael and his 64-year-old father, Gregory McMichael, were charged on May 7, 2020, the day before Abery’s 26 years old. Murder and serious assault.

They were arrested by state law enforcement after another man’s mobile phone video shot at the scene was posted to the local radio station. Gregory McMichael told the police that Arbery attacked his son and was shot to death in a shotgun battle with Travis.

On May 21, 2020, state authorities arrested William "Roddie" Bryan Jr., the man who filmed Arbery's murder, on charges of felony murder and attempted unlawful imprisonment.

For Arbery's family, his last moments were captured by video, and the pain of his loss was magnified.

"I don't want to watch. I don't want my children to see things like this and see their brothers being killed," said Ahmed's father Marcus Abery, who pointed out Ahmed's at least A sibling watched this video. "My daughter, she called me and started to cry. They just turned my family upside down."

Cooper-Jones said she believed her son was just out for a jog when he met people who described him as a thief. She said their eagerness to make judgments illustrates the bigger problem of prejudice against young black men and boys.

"I think when he enters the property, he might want to see how they will lay the wires...or if this is one of his tasks, how he will do the work," she said, referring to his Plan to become an electrician.

Video: Arbery is overcoming obstacles, family members say

Li Merritt, a civil rights lawyer for the Abery family, said Ahmed's living environment touched deeper aspects of American society.

He said: "Our greedy criminal justice system tends to take in young black teenagers, introduce them to the system, and then never let them out." But when Ahmed died, "he was in a transitional period. ."

At a call for justice in the historic Green County Courthouse in Brunswick in May 2020, his sister told a group of supporters that his death would not be in vain. Many attendees drove hours from Atlanta to get there.

"I want to believe that our lives were planned before we took the first step," Jasmine Arbery said. "I hate to think he was sacrificed, but that's how I feel."

A caravan composed mainly of black car and motorcycle club members returned to the coast of Satira along the running route of Ahmed. People ride on newly waxed and polished Corvette and Dodge to lay flowers on the scene.

Looking at the eulogy later that night, Cooper-Jones said that she has no doubt whether she raised her son correctly. As a mother, she has always been a stubborn person; she knows.

On May 10, 2020, she celebrated her first Mother's Day without the youngest child. Thinking of a greeting card he gave her two years ago, she couldn't help laughing.

"We disagree, but I love you," she recalled Ahmed wrote. "This tells me that I just became interested in him because of what he did."

In the end, she said that nothing her son did in his short life could justify his way of death.

"I will get the answer-this is my promise," she said. "This is the last thing I told him on the day of his funeral. Mom will follow it through."

Sarah Blake Morgan of Brunswick, Georgia, Russ Bynum of Savannah, Georgia, and Kate Brumback of Atlanta contributed. Morrison is a member of the Associated Press's racial and ethnic team. Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/aaronlmorrison.

24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events