A federal judge is admonishing City of Atlanta officials for their poor handling over the Stop Cop City petition submitted earlier this week to force a referendum and put the issue on the ballot for a vote.
U.S. District Judge Mark Cohen said his hands are tied and he does not have the authority to rule on the petition of more than 100,000 signatures as he cannot interfere with a larger lawsuit filed over the Atlanta Public Safety Training facility in 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
On Monday, Sept. 11, organizers and activists opposed to the controversial Atlanta Public Safety Training Facility, submitted more than 110,000 petition signatures to City Hall to force a ballot referendum on the project better known as Cop City.
But their efforts appear to have been in vain as officials say the petitioners missed the deadline for submission.
U.S. District Judge Mark Cohen accused city officials of moving the goalposts on the signature-gathering campaign, saying they have “directly contributed” to a widespread sense of confusion over the matter.
“On June 21, 2023, instead of approving a referendum petition it had no intention to honor regardless of the number of signatures obtained from city residents, the City could have taken the position it later espoused in this lawsuit and disapproved the petition as unauthorized under Georgia law,” Cohen wrote.
A spokesperson for the City said that voting officials accepted the petition and allowed opponents of the project to collect the signatures as a “courtesy” to those who oppose the project.
Clerk Emeritus of the City of Atlanta Foris Webb III issued the following statement regarding the submission of petitions regarding Atlanta’s Public Safety Training Center upon receiving the advice of counsel:
“[Monday] morning, we received petitions from those seeking a referendum on the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center and have locked them away in a secure location until…
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