BRUNSWICK, Ga. — The trial of the former Brunswick District Attorney accused of trying to obstruct the investigation into the murder of Ahmaud Arbery continued on Thursday. Jackie Johnson is on trial more than four years after Arbery was shot and killed in Satilla Shores.

Johnson is accused of violating her oath of office related to the investigation of the three white men who were eventually convicted in the murder of Arbery, a young Black man from Brunswick.

The state called multiple witnesses to describe the process by which a district attorney could recuse themself from a case. Jackie Johnson recused herself from the Arbery case because Gregory McMichael, one of the men who was eventually convicted of Arbery’s murder, previously worked with her office.

One of the key pieces of evidence that was presented Thursday came from Johnson’s defense team. After the state called Stephanie Oliver, who is the current Assistant Chief of the Glynn County Police Department and was a sergeant in the criminal investigations division when Arbery was killed, the defense team showed an indictment from the grand jury that states the grand jury found Johnson interfered with the investigation by telling investigators not to arrest Gregory McMichael or his son Travis McMichael.

However, Oliver’s testimony on Thursday directly refutes the findings of the grand jury. 

Here is a portion of the transcript of Oliver’s testimony during cross examination with Johnson’s defense team:

“I never had any interaction with Ms. Johnson in this case,” said Oliver.

“Did Jackie Johnson talk to you in any way about the facts of this case?”

“Did Jackie Johnson hinder you in the investigation of this case in any way?”

“Did Jackie Johnson in any way stop you from the lawful discharge of your duties?”

“Did Jackie Johnson in any way direct you not to arrest Travis McMichael?”

Oliver also said that to her knowledge nobody from Jackie Johnson’s office told her or anyone from the Glynn County Police Department to not investigate the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery. The attorney representing the estate of Ahmaud Arbery said that he was not surprised by Oliver’s testimony.

“It was consistent with the pleadings because as we saw through the counts that the state is alleging that Jackie Johnson, through proxy, through George Barnhill, impacted the arrest and the outcome in this case,” said Lee Merritt, “and that’s difficult to prove because that’s not her direct action, but it’s consistent with the theory of the case from the beginning.”

Multiple prosecutors from different district attorneys offices near Brunswick were brought in to detail the conversations they had with Jackie Johnson in the initial days after Ahmaud Arbery was murdered. None of them said that Johnson interfered with the case, nor asked them to interfere with the case after she recused herself because of a prior work relationship with Gregory McMichael.

During court on Thursday Johnson’s attorneys made an argument to get her case thrown out. The jury was excused for nearly the final two hours of court on Thursday while Johnson’s attorneys argued specific language of the grand jury indictment against her.

They claim that the oath of office she took to become district attorney in 2010 was no longer valid when the actions she is accused of doing in 2020 occurred, despite her still being the district attorney. Johnson’s lawyers claim that because the indictment said she violated her oath of 2010 that she should not be held to that because she took another oath following subsequent elections. Merritt said that’s expected legal maneuvering; Arbery’s aunt said it’s insulting.

“It would be malpractice if Mr. Steel had not brought a demur,” said Merritt, “at the close of evidence he’ll bring another rule 55 which is pleading on the merits alone to get the case thrown out, so it’s not uncommon.”

“They’re trying to get out of here and make everybody think she didn’t do nothing wrong,” said Arbery’s aunt Diane Jackson, “and I’m very mad about that because she knows she did wrong, just admit that you did wrong, because if you felt that you didn’t do nothing it wouldn’t have took five years to bring you to justice.”

The judge said that he will take the evening to consider the arguments made by Jackie Johnson’s defense attorney regarding the expiration of her oath of office. 

Court is scheduled to resume Friday at 9 a.m.