In the hate crime trial for the murderers of Ahmaud Arbery, the plea deal was rejected because Arbery's family didn't want the defendants to serve time in a federal facility.
But Arbery's family balked at the deals, particularly an agreement allowing the men to serve their hate crime sentences first in a federal penitentiary.
Why would a federal penitentiary be preferable to a state penitentiary? They were recently convicted on federal hate crime charges, which means they will still have a federal sentence to serve if my understanding is correct. How is the outcome of a conviction different than a plea deal?
What is the advantage of serving a sentence in a federal prison? Are the advantages really so great the family would reject a 30-year plea bargain and admission of guilt for it?