Stop Cop City Protesters File Lawsuits Against Atlanta Police for Violation of First Amendment and Wrongful Arrest
Five Atlanta residents and one journalist have filed multiple lawsuits against the City of Atlanta and the police after being unlawfully arrested during a Stop Cop City protest on September 8, 2021. The residents were marching through an East Atlanta neighborhood, holding signs and chanting, when the Atlanta Police Department tackled, arrested, and subsequently jailed them at the Atlanta City Detention Center. They were charged with a traffic citation for “pedestrian in roadway,” despite it being a minor offense typically associated with jaywalking. The Atlanta residents allege that the police used this charge to unlawfully interfere with and suppress the protest due to their personal interest in ‘Cop City’s construction.
“As we protested police violence and the use of public resources to build Cop City, the police held their own counter-protest. They were out there to intimidate us and criminalize our beliefs, not to protect our rights,” says one of the Atlantans filing for wrongful arrest.
The incident occurred on September 8, 2021, coinciding with the city council vote on the Cop City lease through a zoom meeting. Public comment on Cop City lasted for a record-breaking 17 hours, highlighting the strong opposition from Atlantans. As council members voted on Cop City, protesters gathered outside their residences, expressing their dissent through chants and signs. 10 protesters and a journalist were present outside former city council member Natalyn Archibong’s home. Archibong stated that she did not call the police nor request the protesters to leave. However, despite the protestors asserting their right to gather, the police carried out aggressive arrests, detaining everyone on site, including a journalist who was covering the event.
Leading up to the City Council’s vote on the lease of…
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