A defense attorney representing one of the three men charged with Ahmaud Arbery’s murder has compared the case against his client to a “public lynching.” Kevin Gough, who’s representing William “Roddie” Bryan, made the statement as he described his opposition to the public demonstrations made on court grounds.“This case has been infected by things that have nothing to do with the guilt or innocence of these defendants,” Gough told Judge Timothy Walmsley, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Travis McMichael, his father, Gregory, and Bryan face several charges for allegedly chasing Arbery in their truck and killing him as he ran away.

The defense for the three men rested its case Thursday, with Gough alleging that the jury’s decision would be influenced by “third parties.” “They’ve been doing it from the gallery of this courtroom. They’ve been doing it outside. This is what a public lynching looks like in the 21st century.” Lead prosecutor Linda Dunikoski told the judge Gough knew exactly what he was doing. “That was not ineffective counsel by any stretch of the imagination. That was strategic. He got the response he wanted,” she said.