Biden Says Arbery Verdict ‘Not Enough’ To Ensure Equal Justice

President Joe Biden released a statement Wednesday on the trial of Gregory and Travis McMichael, and William Bryan, for the 2020 killing of Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia.

Biden lauded the guilty verdict while stressing that more must be done to ensure America is a truly equal society for people of all colors. Travis McMichael was found guilty Wednesday of malice murder for shooting and killing Arbery in February 2020, while his father Gregory and neighbor Bryan were found guilty of felony murder for helping to chase and trap Arbery with their trucks.

“Ahmaud Arbery’s killing – witnessed by the world on video – is a devastating reminder of how far we have to go in the fight for racial justice in this country,” Biden said. “Mr. Arbery should be here today, celebrating the holidays with his mother, Wanda Cooper Jones, and his father, Marcus Arbery. Nothing can bring Mr. Arbery back to his family and to his community, but the verdict ensures that those who committed this horrible crime will be punished.”

Pres. Biden on the Ahmaud Arbery verdicts:

“While the guilty verdicts reflect our justice system doing its job, that alone is not enough.” ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/DpXrcBbV6S

— Shelby Talcott (@ShelbyTalcott) November 24, 2021

“While the guilty verdicts reflect our justice system doing its job, that alone is not enough. Instead, we must recommit ourselves to building a future of unity and shared strength, where no one fears violence because of the color of their skin,” Biden continued on the Arbery case. “My administration will continue to do the hard work to ensure that equal justice under law is not just a phrase emblazoned in stone above the Supreme Court, but a reality for all Americans.”

The verdict comes just days after Kyle Rittenhouse, a teen who shot and killed two men while wounding another during riots in Kenosha, Wisconsin last year, was found not guilty of murder after claiming he acted in self-defense. Biden initially told Daily Caller White House correspondent Shelby Talcott that he stood by the jury’s decision in that case, but later said he was “angry and concerned” by the outcome. (RELATED: ‘Actual Malice’: Rittenhouse Responds To Biden Calling Him A ‘White Supremacist’)