Police Killing of Protester Brings Grief, Urgency to Atlanta’s ‘Stop Cop City’ Movement Organizers are calling on national support for their continued efforts to halt the construction of a police militarization facility in the Atlanta forest. Aja Arnold
Jail Deaths Have Spiked, But Atlanta’s Diversion Program May Lose Funding Deaths at the Fulton County Jail have quadrupled compared to last year. Despite this, county commissioners are threatening to cut funding to one of the Atlanta area’s main pre-arrest diversion initiatives. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg
Nearly Half the People at Crowded Atlanta Jail Haven’t Been Formally Charged With a Crime, ACLU Says Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat says the county needs more jail beds to fix the jail's crisis. But a new ACLU report says that significant numbers of people in the jail can be released. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg
Prosecutor Lauded For Investigating Trump Also Wants to Send Educators to Prison As Fulton County DA Fani Willis’s profile rises, the glossy coverage has largely ignored her crusade to incarcerate teachers accused of cheating on tests. Anna Simonton
Why Atlantans Are Pushing to Stop ‘Cop City’ After the city council passed the ground lease for massive police facility known as “Cop City,” local opposition hasn’t ceased; it’s evolved. Aja Arnold
‘Democracy Pressure-Tested’: Voter Suppression Efforts Underway As Election Nears Efforts by elected leaders in several states are making it harder to get to the polls and fomenting misinformation about the election amid a pandemic. Joshua Vaughn
After Atlanta Teen Is Injured in a Police Encounter, Lawyers Call for Change The 17-year-old, who his lawyers say was pushed off a fence by a police officer, survived the fall but suffered serious injuries. Joshua Vaughn
Criminal Justice Advocates Say New Law Undermines Georgia’s Efforts at Bail Reform The law, known as SB 402, eliminates the use of signature bonds for a number of felonies, putting poor people who might not be able to afford cash bail at a disadvantage. Victoria Law
Atlanta’s Mayor Wants $13 Million More For Police. Four Officers Were Just Fired For Using Excessive Force. Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has asked for the budget increase amid ongoing local and national reports of police violence against protesters. Ko Bragg
Atlanta Bail Reform Is Leaving Behind Homeless and Mentally Ill People A number of people spent multiple days at the Atlanta City Detention Center for low-level offenses, including for driving while using a cell phone and for walking in the roadway. Aaron Morrison
Deputies ‘Tortured, Then Killed’ Man At Georgia Jail On ‘Taser Tuesday,’ Attorneys Say Antonio May, a 32 year-old father of three, died in the Fulton County Jail in September after deputies pepper-sprayed and shot him with a Taser. Aaron Morrison
