Cobb District Attorney Joyette M. Holmes has taken over the state's—and perhaps the nation's—most-watched case.

She becomes the fourth prosecutor on the case since Ahmaud Arbery was shot dead on Feb. 23. Attorney General Chris Carr announced the change Monday, and Holmes announced her acceptance.

Two local DAs recused themselves over conflicts of interest without making arrests. The third DA accepted an offer of assistance from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation after a video of the shooting surfaced last Tuesday. Arrests followed on Thursday evening.

GBI Director Vic Reynolds said Friday morning the state had sufficient probable cause to arrest Gregory McMichael, 64, and Travis McMichael, 34, on charges of murder and aggravated assault. The father and son were taken into custody and booked into the Glynn County Jail. No defense counsel has been entered for them as of Monday.

"If we didn't believe it, we wouldn't have arrested them," Reynolds said. "If we believe it, then we're gonna put the bracelets on them. And that's what we did."

Standing with Reynolds in that Friday morning news conference was Liberty County-based Atlantic Judicial Circuit District Attorney Tom Durden. Carr said his office reassigned the case to Durden on April 13. That was after District Attorneys Jackie Johnson in the Brunswick Judicial Circuit and George Barnhill of the Waycross Judicial Circuit recused themselves without making arrests.

Carr said he appreciates Durden's involvement, but the "case has grown in size and magnitude" since he accepted the appointment. "As an experienced district attorney, Tom has recognized that another office is better suited from a resource perspective to now handle the case. As a result, he has requested our office to appoint another district attorney."

Carr said his office "formally appointed" Holmes Monday to lead the prosecution.

"District Attorney Holmes is a respected attorney with experience, both as a lawyer and a judge, and the Cobb County District Attorney's office has the resources, personnel and experience to lead this prosecution and ensure justice is done," Carr said in a written statement.

Holmes said she has accepted, and "the call to serve will not be taken lightly."

"Our office will immediately gather all materials related to the investigation thus far and continue to seek additional information to move this case forward," Holmes said in a written statement. "We appreciate the confidence that Attorney General Carr has in our office's ability to bring to light the justice that this case deserves."

Holmes said that, once she and her team have received the investigative file from the GBI and reviewed all facts and circumstances of the death, "all appropriate charges under Georgia law will be presented to a Glynn County Grand Jury for indictment."

Holmes noted Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Harold D. Melton has extended the statewide judicial emergency for the coronavirus pandemic through June 12. The order suspends jury trials and leaves the courts open only to essential functions. Holmes said her team "will work as expeditiously as possible to move the case forward."

Holmes also said her office is "committed to ensuring that the family of Mr. Arbery is supported throughout the process of seeking justice in this case."

Holmes became Cobb's DA last July 1, after Reynolds left the job to head the GBI. Before that, she served four years as chief judge of the Cobb County Magistrate Court. In both those positions, Holmes made history as the first African American and first woman.

She previously worked in private practice and as a prosecutor in Cobb. She grew up in Valdosta, and earned B.A. degrees from the University of Georgia in psychology and criminal justice. She earned her law degree at the University of Baltimore School of Law in Maryland. She and her family live in west Cobb—about 300 miles from Brunswick.

Philadelphia civil rights attorney S. Lee Merritt, who represents Arbery's mother, welcomed the change on Twitter, along with side-by-side photos of Holmes and Durden.

"Another huge WIN for #JusticeForAhmaud!," Merritt tweeted. "At the family's demand—a special prosecutor will replace Tom Durden the S. GA prosecutor that sat on the case until video of Ahmaud's murder was leaked. Joyette Holmes is out of @cobbcountygovt. Her office is being reviewed for conflicts."

"In order for justice to be carried out both effectively and appropriately, it is imperative that the special prosecutor has no affiliation with the SE Georgia legal or law enforcement communities," Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents Arbery's father, said via Twitter Monday. "We implore District Attorney Joyette Holmes to be zealous in her search for justice, as she works to hold all of those responsible for the unjustifiable execution of an unarmed young Black man in broad daylight."