Another thing: There was no claim or charge against the police department, which there sure as hell would have been if the guy had been acting under color of law. The guy had no real recoverable assets, but the police department did, and its insurer sure as hell did; so a claim would have been brought against them. But, none was.
My bad. I found a federal lawsuit on line (it’s a different case than this one, which I thought was the federal civil rights lawsuit, as that was what our local radio station said today; I mistakenly assumed this thread was about that, but this thread is actually about a federal Hate Crimes action).
So, there WAS a federal civil rights lawsuit filed in the USDC for the Southern District of Georgia, naming as defendants the McMichaels, Bryant, a cop, the police chief, the DA, and some John Doe officials. That lawsuit DOES allege that all three of the perps were “entrusted by local law enforcement to respond to trespasses in the area.” This lawsuit DOES allege they acted under color of law.
I’m trying to find the status of this civil rights case, and who is defending whom.
He was no longer working for the police department, so why should their insurance cover him? This fact does not establish "color of law" one way or the other.
Many people take lawful actions in dealing with criminals and are not covered by the local police department's insurance.
The legal minds at "Legal Insurrection" saw what the McMIchaels did as under the color of law, and what this proves is that this particular point is a matter of debate.
I think what they did was reasonable under the Georgia statute and I also think if the guy who had been shot was white, nobody would have been brought up on charges. The cops would have probably patted the McMichaels on the back and told them "good job!"
Do not be deceived. This is a deliberately ginned up "outrage" fueled by deliberate media lying because they needed black voters angry while heading into an election year.
This case has been no more truthful than the Travon Martin case, the Michael Brown case, or the George Floyd case. In all these examples, the media deliberately lied about the facts of the case in order to gin up hate and outrage which they used to gain political power in Washington DC for their allies. (or masters, depending on how you want to look at it.)