Ahmaud Arbery’s Mother to Attend George Floyd’s Funeral in Houston

Ahmaud Arbery’s mother will be attending the funeral of George Floyd, who was killed during an arrest in Minneapolis last week, in Houston, Texas. According to TMZ, Wanda Cooper and her attorney Lee Merritt will be in attendance at Floyd’s memorial. Although Floyd died in Minnesota, his funeral service is being held in his hometown, on Monday.

Arbery was shot and killed in Georgia by Travis McMichael in February while he was out for a jog, but it wasn’t until May that video footage of the incident became public. McMichael and his father Gregory admitted to chasing down Arbery with guns after suspecting him of being connected to a number of burglaries in their neighborhood. There has been no evidence presented to confirm that Arbery was connected. After the video footage went viral, there was a mass outcry for justice. The case was re-investigated and the McMichaels were both arrested and charged with murder, as well as aggravated assault.

Following Arbery’s death, Brunswick District Attorney Jackie Johnson and Waycross District Attorney George Barnhill both recused themselves from the case, essentially refusing to prosecute the McMichaels. When the footage of them chasing Arbery in their truck was released, Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr ordered that both county DAs be investigated. “When a district attorney is unable to take on a case due to a conflict, our office must appoint another prosecutor to handle the case,” he said in a statement. Carr added that Arbery’s case has led to “many questions and concerns” regarding “communications between and actions taken by the District Attorneys of the Brunswick and Waycross Circuits.” The FBI has since taken over investigating the situation as well.

Floyd’s tragic death came on May 25, after being arrested by four now-former Minneapolis police officers. He was taken into custody on “suspicion of forgery,” but while the officers were detaining him, bystanders filmed them holding him on the ground, with one of the officers kneeling on his neck while he cried out that he could not breathe. The officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck was identified as Derek Chauvin. He was eventually arrested and charged with third-degree murder, as well as second-degree manslaughter. However, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced on Wednesday that the murder charge against Chauvin has been upped to second-degree murder.

Additionally, the other three officers — Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng, and Tou Thao — have all been arrested and charged with “aiding and abetting second-degree murder.” They have also been charged with “aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter.” All four men are currently behind bars.