Breakdown

Prosecutors building a case against the three men accused in the death of Ahmaud Arbery have passed several motions regarding what evidence can be submitted in court. Meanwhile, the contention that gunman Travis McMichael uttered a racial epithet while standing over Arbery's body remains the most explosive element of the case. However, jurors may never hear about it. Join host Bill Rankin as he explores how issues raised now could shape the outcome of a trial. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since Ahmaud Arbery's death, father and son Gregory and Travis McMichael have been condemned by many as racist vigilantes who targeted a Black man running down their street. Attorneys for the men claim that is far from true. Join host Bill Rankin as he explores the McMichaels' history prior to their fateful meeting with Ahmaud Arbery. Nothing could be further from the truth, lawyers for both Travis and Greg McMichael recently told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An attorney for one of the three men accused of chasing and killing Ahmaud Arbery in February says the group's actions are legally justifiable by a law dating back all the way to the 1860s. Meanwhile, Georgia's legislature is considering repealing the law because of the case. Join host Bill Rankin as he examines what Georgia's citizen's arrest law says and how it may impact the Arbery murder case. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Protests in Atlanta attract national attention as a preliminary hearing in Brunswick begins. During the probable cause hearing, there is only one witness: the lead investigator on the case. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A tragic shooting has thrust coastal Georgia onto the national scene. On Feb. 23, Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old African-American man, was shot three times in a neighborhood near Brunswick, where he was confronted by two white men. The video of the shooting has now been seen by millions. In this special episode of Breakdown, hosts Bill Rankin and Greg Bluestein examine what is known about the case, and what’s to come. You’ll hear from officials down in Brunswick as well as former AJC managing editor, Bert Roughton, who lives in nearby St. Simons and has covered the case, as well as Brad Schrade, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who has investigated police shootings for the AJC and has also covered the Arbery shooting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this special episode of Breakdown, AJC reporter Joshua Sharpe decided to take a close look at a 35-year-old double murder case. An African-American couple was shot and killed inside Rising Daughter Baptist Church in Camden County, Ga. Dennis Perry was convicted of the killings and has been in prison for 20 years for them. What Sharpe found out is stunning. And we’re going to let him tell you about it, from beginning to end. In this episode, he reads his story, “The Imperfect Alibi: the forgotten suspect, the DNA and the church murders that haunted a detective.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chip Olsen's fate is now in the hands of the jury. Will the ex-cop end up behind bars? We take you through the murder trial's dramatic conclusion and its aftermath. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a rocky start, prosecutors come out swinging in the murder trial of Chip Olsen. One of their star witnesses: Olsen's own police academy instructor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Testimony begins in the murder trial of Robert "Chip" Olsen and a trio of witnesses who saw Anthony Hill's final moments take the stand for the state. But do they help or hurt the prosecution's case? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A jury is seated and Chip Olsen's murder trial is finally underway. The ex-cop's defense lawyer said he fired at Anthony Hill because he was terrified as the naked man ran at him. But the prosecution offers a surprising new theory. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chip Olsen's legal team turns to a mock jury to road test their defense strategy. Jurors had a lot of questions and some strong opinions. And what will the lawyers be looking for when they select a real jury? This murder case could turn conventional wisdom on its head. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Anthony Hill was killed by DeKalb County Police Officer Robert “Chip” Olsen in 2015 he became the latest casualty in a growing crisis: One in every four people shot and killed by police is suffering from mental illness. Why do police encounters with the mentally ill turn deadly so often? And would Hill be alive today if DeKalb had done more to train its officers? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Former Police Officer Chip Olsen takes the stand in a risky gamble to try to get the murder charges against him dismissed. Does it pay off? And his lawyers push a controversial defense used by cops to justify the use of force. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who is Chip Olsen? The cop who shot and killed Anthony Hill followed an unusual path to the force. We’ll tell you why it’s so rare to indict police officers who kill in the line of duty. And we’ll take you inside the surprising revelation that convinced the DeKalb DA to not only charge Olsen, but to charge him with murder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On March 9, 2015, the manager of the Heights at Chamblee apartment complex called 911 to report that a man was wandering the grounds naked in the middle of the afternoon. Soon afterward, he was dead, shot and killed by the DeKalb County police officer who arrived at the scene. Who was Anthony Hill, the 26-year-old Afghanistan war veteran whose life ended that day? And how did he end up dead at the hands of police? We introduce you to Hill's life — his music and his family — as well his struggles with mental illness. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anthony Hill was a loving son, talented musician and an Afghanistan War veteran. In 2015, Hill was shot and killed by DeKalb County Police officer Chip Olsen, who was responding to a 911 call of a naked man wandering an apartment complex. Hill was unarmed and off of his medications. Olsen claims he acted in self-defense. In our new season of Breakdown, hosts Bill Rankin and Christian Boone tell the story of Hill's life and death, and will follow the trial of Officer Olsen, who is charged with murder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The jury in the McIver murder case finally comes back -- after four days -- and delivers a confusing verdict that appears to say McIver intended to shoot his wife, Diane, but didn't intend to kill her. The closing arguments, four separate addresses by some of the best lawyers in Georgia, were every bit the spectacle that you'd imagine.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The jury in the Tex McIver murder case gets the case and deliberates, and deliberates, and deliberates. One of the last things the jury asked for was permission to see, for a second time, the SUV in which Diane McIver was shot, AND they ask to take the .38 revolver with them to the car. So some of them sat where Tex sat and pulled the trigger that Tex pulled.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The state rests after putting up more 70 witnesses. The defense case-in-chief takes only 2 1/2 days. The mysterious masseuse, Annie Anderson, takes the stand. And the executor for Diane McIver's estate has a surprise in store for the prosecution. Then the defense rests, and we're down to couple of rebuttal witnesses from the prosecution.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The prosecution puts up the chief homicide investigator in the Tex McIver murder case and then tries its best to show how deficient the police investigation was. Normally, the district attorney and the police are on the same side. But not this time. The police charged McIver with involuntary manslaughter, but the DA went with malice murder -- convinced that the Atlanta Police Department was letting McIver off too easy.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices