One of the men charged with killing Ahmaud Arbery is requesting to be freed from a Georgia prison. Willie “Roddie” Bryan Jr. is reportedly asking the Glynn County Superior Court for a humanitarian release, citing his high blood pressure as a reason.
“He has already seen a cardiologist and is medicated, but the sporadic checks of his blood pressure regularly reflect blood pressure in excess of 180/100,” Bryan’s attorney Kevin Gough wrote in a brief.
Gough mentioned that Bryan’s blood pressure reached 190/100 before the end of 2020 — higher than the normal blood pressure (120/80) — and hinted that the health condition could result in his client’s death.
“Assuming he survives long enough to have a trial, he continued, “Mr. Bryan’s ability to attend, follow along and participate meaningfully in his own trial would be greatly impaired if this issue is not addressed.”
Gough also requested a new hearing in the brief.
Bryan was arrested in February alongside Gregory and Travis McMichael after they all chased Arbery — a Black jogger who was running through their neighborhood. He allegedly pinned the 25-year-old down to the ground with his truck before Travis fatally shot him.
The three men are charged with four counts of felony murder, one count of false imprisonment, one count of malice murder, two counts of aggravated assault and one count of criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment. Their previous requests for bail have been denied multiple times to the satisfaction of Arbery’s mother.
In November, when the McMichaels asked to be let out on bond, Wanda Cooper-Jones begged the judge to keep them incarcerated, noting the murder suspects had a lack of remorse for her son’s death. “Nobody reached out to say, ‘I’m sorry for your loss,’” she said. “I don’t think they are remorseful at all.”