Travis also testified about his dad calling in to make a police report after encountering a homeless person with a machete or similar knife on a bridge. The defense played audio of the call. Gregory said during the call there had been a lot of break-ins in the area.
Then, the defense changed the focus of questioning to 220 Satilla Drive, the property that Larry English owns, and that Travis accused Arbery of trying to break into. Travis testified that he had heard of thefts at the address from his mother and a neighbor.
The younger McMichael also testified that he had a Smith & Wesson pistol stolen from his truck on Jan. 1, 2020. The defense played audio of Travis making the 911 call. He said he was concerned about the theft because he didn’t know who had it and what the person planned to do with it.
“It was common. It was common talk around the neighborhood,” Travis McMichael said. He testified that crime was “steady” in the area and that English installed a surveillance system, which Travis learned about from his parents, Facebook, and neighbors.
Travis said the crime trend concentrated in the area of English’s property was starting to narrow to a specific person. Travis said on Feb. 11 he went to get gas and saw someone running across the road who appeared at a Satilla Drive address, near bushes and then on the driveway, about 20 or 30 feet off the road.
Travis said he didn’t have his lights on the person running who was “lurking” or “creeping” in the shadows, staying close to the house. He later noticed Travis’ truck, the defendant testified. Travis McMichael said he got out of his vehicle to ask the man what he was doing and maybe “run him off.” Travis said the man pulled off his shirt and reached for his waist area. “It freaked me out,” Travis said. He added that he was “under the assumption” that the man was armed, so Travis just got in his car and left for home.
When he arrived, he told his dad what happened and that he saw the man go into 220 Satilla Drive, Travis said. When Gregory started to leave, Travis stopped him, knowing his father just had a stroke, a couple of heart attacks, and a busted hip.
Travis grabbed a gun he kept in a safe, and called police. “I was still scared. I was breathing heavy,” he said. The defense played audio of Travis’ 911 call, in which Travis said there had been a string of burglaries in the area.
Travis testified that he had no reason to go into the house, but his dad, who was armed, and a neighbor planned to. Travis said he suspected that the person he spotted was armed and that Travis stayed behind to talk to police.
He testified in court that the man later found walking around nonchalantly in the house “startled” him. “It’s just bold,” Travis said.