exactly. Ahmad was fighting for his life as he knew he was about to be lynched by confederate plate sporting rednecks with guns.
Defense attorney in the Ahmaud Arbery murder trial sought a plea deal for one defendant and was declined, Arbery's mother's lawyer says https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/19/us/ahmaud-arbery-killing-trial-testimony-concludes/index.html
Outside court, Ahmaud Arbery’s killing is a racial justice issue. Inside, the trial skirts race. Travis McMichael told the jury Wednesday that he wanted to stop Arbery for the police and raised his gun in the hopes of scaring Arbery off. Choking up at times, he said he fired when he believed the man was “overpowering” him in a struggle — striking him and grabbing his shotgun. “I knew that he was on me,” he said. “I knew that I was losing this.” Man who fatally shot Ahmaud Arbery says he feared for his life in struggle for gun He said he recognized Arbery from an incident earlier in February 2020, when he spotted a man “lurking” at an under-construction home. The man reached toward his waist as if for a weapon, he said, and then entered the building, leading Travis McMichael to make a police report.
So...you can approach somebody who isn't bothering you, point a gun at them with no legitimate reason, and then claim self-defense?
Based on the laws in Georgia being cited at this trial -- it appears that you can (in Georgia at that time). You merely need the suspicion that the person may be involved in a crime. Note -- I am not defending this -- just noting what the press is saying about the trail.
There's a gray area as to whether it was a legitimate citizen's arrest, and a gray area as to whether it is self-defense if someone grabs your gun and tries to take it away.
The defense attorney really should stick to the points of law rather than political commentary. IMO this is how you lose a case. (Assuming the jury is rational).