61 indicted on RICO charges in Georgia over 'Cop City' protests

Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Sixty-one activists have been indicted on RICO charges over their actions to prevent construction of the future Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, which opponents have dubbed "Cop City."

The state's Republican attorney general, Chris Carr, announced the sweeping indictment Tuesday during a press conference that describes the defendants as anti-police and anti-government militant anarchists who have used violence, intimidation and property destruction to prevent construction of the controversial $90 million facility, where police and fire services training will be conducted.

The indictment, which spends pages to describe anarchy, states the defendants are members of Defend the Atlantic Forest, whose purpose is to occupy parts or all of 381 forested acres in DeKalb County, Ga., that are owned by the Atlanta Police Foundation and leased by the city for the purpose of construction of the training center.

"As the indictment asserts, members of Defend the Atlanta Forest subscribe to a philosophy of anarchy. They hold a core belief that society should abolish police, government and private business. And as further alleged, they are willing to bring about such changes 'by any means necessary,' including violence," he said.

The court document lists 225 incidents of alleged violence committed by defendants beginning on July 5, 2020, when two people threw "objects and a Molotov cocktail" at the Georgia State Patrol headquarters.

Prosecutors argue that the alleged conspiracy began as far back as May 25, 2020 -- the day a police officer killed George Floyd in Minneapolis, sparking mass anti-police brutality protests nationwide. It is also 11 months before officials announced that the forested area had been leased for the purpose of building the police training facility.

When asked to explain how they can allege the conspiracy began even prior to the announcement of the facility, John Fowler, deputy attorney general, said they would present their case in court.

He also explained that under Georgia law it was not necessary for all defendants of the conspiracy to know one another to be charged with violating RICO, only that they have committed an overt act in furtherance of the conspiracy.

"Violence is not political speech and I will never understand how we got to where we are today," Carr said. "It's important to remember that these acts of violence are in response to the fact that the residents of Atlanta have rightly chosen to build a state-of-the-art public safety center."

The indictment was filed in Fulton County -- the same jurisdiction that weeks earlier brought RICO charges against former President Donald Trump and 18 other defendants over their alleged attempt to overturn the 2020 election in the state.

Of the defendants charged Tuesday, only 13 are from Georgia. Five have also been charged with one count of domestic terrorism and one count of first-degree attempted arson, while three others have been charged with 15 counts of money laundering.

The Cop City Vote Coalition, which is seeking to force a referendum on the training facility, condemned Carr for bringing "blatantly authoritarian" and "anti-democratic" charges against defendants in an effort to snuff out opposition to the facility.

"These charges ... seek to intimidate protesters, legal observers and bail funds alike, and send the chilling message that any dissent to Cop City will be punished with the full power and violence of the government," it said in a statement.

"Carr's actions are a part of a retaliatory pattern of prosecutions against organizers nationwide that attack the right to protest and freedom of speech."

In response to the criticism, Carr said: "Our job is to enforce the laws of the state and as you can tell in this indictment, this is about violent acts, plain and simple."

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, supported the indictment, saying in a brief statement that "my top priority is and always will be keeping Georgians safe, especially against out-of-state radicals that threaten the safety of our citizens and law enforcement."

Meanwhile, the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia also issued a statement of concern over the indictment.

"Georgia law enforcement officials are disproportionately wielding these over-broad laws to stigmatize and target those who disagree with the government," Aamar Ahmad, senior staff attorney with ACLU's National Security Project, said in a statement.