Jurors in the trial of the three men charged with the murder of Ahmaud Arbery began deliberating just before noon on Tuesday after attorneys made their closing arguments.

RELATED: Trial for Ahmaud Arbery death continues in Georgia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BC0tEf-AEeU

How the nearly all-white panel decides on a verdict could ultimately hinge on how they view Travis McMichael, who fatally shot Arbery and was the only defendant to testify.

“If the jury thinks that (Travis) McMichael was justified in using deadly force, then I don’t think they’ll convict his father either, or for that matter the other defendant,” Timothy Floyd, a law professor at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, told USA TODAY. Floyd has been following the trial.

Twelve jurors will decide if McMichael, his father, Gregory, and William “Roddie” Bryan are guilty of murder and other crimes in the death of the 25-year-old Black man on Feb. 23, 2020.

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