The Atlanta Public Safety Training Center — the southern DeKalb County facility colloquially known as “Cop City” — officially opened its doors Tuesday after four contentious years of development. The 85-acre campus will serve as the training grounds for the city’s police and firefighters, yet it has received strong pushback due to its environmental impact, $67 million […]
Cop City
Posted inCop City, Courts, Politics & Policy, Public Safety
Family of Slain ‘Stop Cop City’ Activist Sues in Pursuit of Answers
The parents of an activist fatally shot by the Georgia State Patrol SWAT team in 2023 have filed a lawsuit against three law enforcement officers that they say violated their child’s First and Fourth Amendment rights. Manuel Esteban Paez Terán — better known as Tortuguita — was a 26-year-old nonbinary environmental activist who was protesting the […]
Posted inCity Politics, Cop City
Activists Protest ‘Cop City’ by Dropping Thousands of Balls During City Council Meeting
Atlanta residents opposed to the public safety training center being built in South River Forest — known as “Cop City” — protested its construction by dropping 116,000 ping pong balls during a City Council meeting on Monday. Each ball was meant to symbolize one signature that organizers said they gathered for a petition to hold a ballot […]
Posted inCop City
Atlanta Police Foundation Sued Over Unanswered ‘Cop City’ Records Requests
A lawsuit filed in Fulton County Superior Court alleges that the Atlanta Police Foundation violated the Georgia Open Records Act by failing to respond to records requests related to the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, which the foundation is contracted with the city to build. The Georgia Journalism and Access Project at the University of […]
Posted inCop City
Lawmakers Table Ballot Referendum Ordinance, Angering Cop City Vote Backers
An anticipated Atlanta City Council vote on a ballot referendum ordinance backed by Stop Cop City activists was postponed on Monday after municipal attorneys raised concerns about whether the measure violates existing state law. The original legislation introduced by Atlanta City Council member Liliana Bakhtiari on Jan. 8 would codify a process for Atlanta residents […]
Posted inCop City, Criminal Justice
Environmental Impact Targeted in New Push Against ‘Cop City’
Opponents of the developing Atlanta Public Safety Training Center have adopted a new strategy to stop the so-called “Cop City” from being built. Activists filed a complaint with the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of External Civil Rights Compliance last week, arguing that the 85-acre site in unincorporated southern DeKalb County is damaging the ecosystem in […]
Posted inCop City
Lawmaker Nixes Plan to Introduce ‘Cop City’ Measure After City Attorney Input
The latest effort to let Atlanta voters weigh in on the public safety training center, dubbed “Cop City” by critics, via a ballot referendum was upended by municipal attorneys Monday afternoon, according to a lawmaker. Post 3 At-Large Atlanta City Council member Keisha Sean Waites said she and fellow lawmaker Liliana Bakhtiari had planned to […]
Posted inCop City
Organizers Make Final Push on ‘Cop City’ Referendum
Mary Hooks was the first person to sign the petition for a ballot referendum on the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, dubbed “Cop City.” More than six weeks later, she now spends her days canvassing the streets of Atlanta collecting signatures from registered voters to get the issue on the ballot. The Cop City Vote […]
Posted inCop City
Mayor’s Task Force Proposes Community-Centric Changes for Atlanta’s ‘Cop City’
A task force assembled by Mayor Andre Dickens has announced its recommendations to make the controversial public safety training center known as “Cop City” more “community-oriented.” The group proposes involving community members in developing anti-bias courses and other police training curriculum that acknowledge the “difficult history” of policing in Atlanta. “[The task force subgroups] all […]