Lawsuit accuses Atlanta police of illegally targeting 'Cop City' activists

ATLANTA - A new lawsuit filed in federal court by an arrested "Stop Cop City" activist has accused Atlanta police of illegally targeting critics of the city's soon-to-be-opened public safety training center.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Jamie Marsicano, alleges that authorities view any critic of the training center as a would-be criminal and have repeatedly made arrests without cause, depriving protesters of their First Amendment rights and their civil rights protections against false arrest and malicious prosecution.

MORE: Cop City fight: Court battle over Atlanta Public Safety Center continues as opening date nears

The backstory:

The 85-acre, $115-million facility has been the subject of debate and protests for years as activists attempt to stop what they have nicknamed "Cop City." 

Protests against the project, which have at times resulted in violence and vandalism, escalated after state troopers fatally shot an activist near the site in January 2023. A special prosecutor in October 2023 said he would not pursue charges against the troopers who shot Tortuguita, saying he found that their use of deadly force was "objectively reasonable."

The city says the issues caused by protesters have raised the cost of the training center by about $20 million. 

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In March 2023, officers arrested 23 people near a music festival near the construction site after officials say a group of more than 150 masked individuals stormed the area and clashed with police. A video released by the Atlanta Police Department showed what appears to be fireworks aimed at officers. In the same video, you can see items including rocks and Molotov cocktails being thrown by protestors in the direction of police, a tipped-over vehicle that later became engulfed in flames, and protestors attempting to set other pieces of construction equipment on fire.

Marsicano was taken into custody on the same day during a sweep of the area because they had on "muddy clothing" and was carrying a shield, officers wrote in their arrest warrant. Marsicano’s attorneys say those assertions were false.

What they're saying:

Marsicano’s attorneys say their client was not among the group that attacked the construction site and never left the festival grounds until they were arrested while walking back to their vehicle after police ordered everyone to disperse.

According to the lawsuit, Marsicano was caught up in an "indiscriminate mass arrest of legitimate festival attendees" that was part of a pattern spearheaded by Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum of authorities targeting the "Stop Cop City" movement.

Marsicano was subsequently charged with domestic terrorism. Months later, they were one of 61 charged with violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO, by the Georgia Attorney General.

As a result of their arrest, Marsicano was banned from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill campus and completed their law degree remotely, but has had difficulty finding a job and securing housing because of the charges, the lawsuit claimed.

Marsicano was "publicly broadcast to the world as a ‘domestic terrorist’ and ‘RICO co-conspirator,’ forever tarnishing Plaintiff’s personal and professional life," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit lists more than a dozen instances in which authorities "pretextually charged individuals deemed to be at or around Stop Cop City," including after a May 2022 protest where three people "walking home were selectively stopped for carrying Stop Cop City signs," and taken into custody. Those arrests, as well as others, have led to civil lawsuits that are pending.

Marsicano’s lawsuit names various law enforcement officials as well as the city of Atlanta, which it accuses of having made a "custom and practice" of targeting critics of the training center.

What's next:

Last week, attorneys for the city and activists attempting to stop the project appeared in court to argue over a push for a referendum that would put the city's lease to the Atlanta Police Foundation, the nonprofit that runs the facility, up for a vote.

The court has not ruled on the referendum at this time. 

The center is expected to be fully operational by the end of March or the beginning of April.