The Stop Cop City case is a racketeering case against activists opposed to Atlanta's public safety training center. The center officially opened on April 29, 2025. In September 2023, a Fulton grand jury indicted 61 people on various charges, including domestic terrorism, vandalism and racketeering. The group are known as the ATL61. One year later, the state dropped money laundering charges against three residents who operate the Atlanta Solidarity Fund, a charity that pays bail and provides legal defense to protesters. Supporters of the defendants argue that the state's case was designed to halt the protests by people who wanted Atlanta to cancel work on the 85-acre, $118 million police and firefighting academy. The project includes animal stables, a driving course and mock buildings for training. Experts believe the racketeering trial is the largest Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act case (RICO) against protestors in U.S. history. |