Morning, y’all! Happy long weekend eve. Hopefully you get to sleep in Monday, but it’s also going to be a capital-B Busy day with MLK Day celebrations and football and, oh right, an entire Presidential Inauguration. So keep an eye out for Monday’s A.M. ATL edition, which will touch on all of that. Today, we’ve got state budget updates and more cold coming our way. But first, a must-read for everyone in our community.
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BROKEN PROMISES AND GRIEVING FAMILIES
Credit: Christina Matacotta/AJC
Credit: Christina Matacotta/AJC
In 2020, after the deaths of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Rayshard Brooks in Atlanta, city leaders promised to find new ways to improve accountability in local policing. One of the solutions was expanding the powers of the Atlanta Citizen Review Board, a group first created in 1987, to investigate police deadly force including shootings and deaths. One of its goals was to increase citizens’ trust in the police.
However, a new AJC investigation has found that since having its powers expanded in 2020, the board has not reviewed any of the 39 deadly force cases referred to the watchdog agency. The AJC also revealed the agency has been plagued with staffing issues and unclear policies.
Why the investigation is so important
I’ll be honest, this is a hard read. But it’s an important one. At the time, the painful conflagrations of the summer of 2020 seemed to at least bear the promise of improvement in racial justice and police accountability. We felt that deeply here in Atlanta, and the findings in the AJC’s investigation are findings you deserve to know.
Samantha Hogan, the investigative reporter who led the story, gave me the reason behind her work.
“My investigation started with one question: What has Atlanta’s citizen review board done since getting new powers in 2020 to investigate police use of deadly force?” she said. “I found that the board has not opened even one deadly force case in the past four years.”
One man’s story
Credit: Courtesy of Dorado family
Credit: Courtesy of Dorado family
The AJC’s seven-month investigation into the Atlanta Citizen Review Board involved dozens of records requests, interviews and evidence reviews. It also looks deeply into the tragic account of Ricardo Dorado Jr., a 33-year-old man who died of cardiac arrest in August 2022 after being restrained on the ground by four Atlanta police officers.
Dorado’s case should have been reviewed by the watchdog agency. It hasn’t been. Arcelia Beltran, Dorado’s sister, says the long years of uncertainty have harmed her trust in police.
“Ever since we were little we were taught that the police are all good. They’re supposed to be there to protect you,” she told the AJC.
What’s next
When there are delays in the kinds of investigations the Citizen Review Board takes on, that can frustrate law enforcement officers, too. The Atlanta police union told the AJC that languishing investigations can keep officers from being promoted or hired for new jobs. The Atlanta Police Department said it would review the AJC’s findings and that it supports the board’s mission.
Read the full investigation here. (Be cautioned: The accompanying video, while critically informative to the story, contains graphic police footage and can be upsetting.)
Not signed up yet? Get A.M. ATL in your inbox each weekday morning. And keep scrolling for more news.
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GEORGIA BUDGET LINES: MORE WITH LESS
Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
Gov. Brian Kemp wants to slash taxes by $1 billion this year while still spending hundreds of millions on schools, prisons and other projects around the state.
How can you spend more while pulling in less? During yesterday’s State of the State address, Kemp said the magic lies in conservative budget practices. It also helps that the state’s reserves have reached a cushy $16.5 billion over the last few years. Still, state Democrats wish Kemp would allot more for things like education, health insurance and child care.
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OH GREAT, MORE COLD
Remember the snow and frigid temperatures we had last week? Wasn’t that fun? Let’s do it again!
Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan says temperatures are going to crash Sunday into Monday, just in time for college football’s biggest night. Oh, and Tuesday and Wednesday could bring the potential for snow. Emphasis on could – it’s too early for forecast models to be certain. Either way, if you have travel plans you may want to schedule more time for your pre-trip fretting session.
Because the cold always brings such delightful news, hospitals in Georgia metro areas are also reporting a surge in flu, COVID-19 and RSV (a potentially serious respiratory virus) cases.
State Epidemiologist Cherie Drenzek says it’s not too late in the season to get a flu shot, and everyone who can should make sure to top up their COVID vaccinations if need be.
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A VERY BUSY LONG WEEKEND
Another reminder that you will be getting a Monday A.M. ATL with the lowdown on MLK Day, Inauguration details and a look at the College Football Playoff National Championship downtown. But it doesn’t hurt to start your planning now.
The AJC’s UATL has a great list of events leading up to and including Jan. 20 to commemorate Martin Luther King, Jr. in the city he called home. Some highlights:
📚 The King Center is holding workshops, book readings and other events ahead of the holiday.
🖼️ Today (Friday) is Martin Luther King Jr. Day at the Atlanta History Center, with special exhibits and programming.
🎞️ The Soul Cinema Sundays Film Series kicks off this Sunday with a screening of “The Last Black Man in San Francisco.” Stick around afterward for some illuminating discussions.
🔎 Browse more events here, and learn more about how MLK Day became a national day of service.
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Credit: Nyah Collins
Credit: Nyah Collins
Oh, and if you’re in the mood for a cool unique show, “Cinderoncé,” the Triple 7 Dance Company’s rendition of ‘Cinderella’ featuring the music of Beyoncé, is coming to Ferst Center for the Arts this weekend only. You know Rodgers and Hammerstein would have loved this.
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QUICK! SNEAK IN SOME MORE WATER MANAGEMENT STUFF WHILE NO ONE’S LOOKING
This week we talked about Atlanta’s long history of water woes. Well, earlier this month President Joe Biden signed into law the City of Atlanta Water Infrastructure Enhancement Act as part of a broad water infrastructure bill. That means the city’s water systems are going to have some new heroes: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers! They’ll conduct a two-year study on the city’s biggest water-related vulnerabilities.
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NEWS BITES
Famed MLB announcer and ‘Mr. Baseball’ Bob Uecker dies at 90
Now he’s sitting in the highest Uecker seats of all.
Trump is reportedly exploring options to ‘preserve’ TikTok
I think we all knew the TikTok saga wouldn’t go down quietly
The TSA hears you on the guns at security checkpoints thing. But ‘I forgot’ won’t fly
Ha! I just got that. “Won’t fly.” But seriously, they don’t want to hear about how you just forgot it was in your bag.
How to tell if you food has Red 3, the dye just banned by the FDA
The picture of candy corn at the top of this article is an ominous sign. (Also RIP to my husband’s maraschino cherry habit.)
How to lower your blood pressure in minutes, according to a physician
The answer is not “Stop over-consuming the news, everything you need to start the day is here with A.M. ATL,” but it’s also not not that.
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PHOTO OF THE DAY
Credit: Nasser Nasser/AP
Credit: Nasser Nasser/AP
What a gesture. What a man. A group of Palestinians planted a grove of 250 olive trees in the West Bank in memory of the late U.S. President Jimmy Carter, whom Palestinian activists say was one of the few world leaders who supported their struggle for independence and freedom. “I think planting olive trees that live at least 100 years old like him is a very suitable way to honor his life and his legacy,” said George Zeidan, the Carter Center’s Director in Israel and Palestine.
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ON THIS DATE
Credit: File photo
Credit: File photo
From the front page of the Jan. 17, 1920 Atlanta Constitution: Old J. Barleycorn At Last Outlawed By United States. At 12:01 A.M. the “Dry” Amendment Became Effective in the United States and All Territory Subject to Its Jurisdiction. NOTHING WITH “KICK” CAN LEGALLY BE SOLD.
Prohibition became the law of the land, but was old news in Georgia since alcohol was outlawed in the state more than a dozen years earlier.
We really should be saying “Old J. Barleycorn” more, which is (as one could guess) colorful slang for alcohol. It comes from an old folk hero called John Barleycorn, who was the personification of barley and all the delicious things that can be made with it — as well as the ills that befall you if you, uh, hang out with him too long.
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ONE MORE THING
Thank you to everyone who commiserated with me over the especially Atlanta-like traffic recently. I’m sure the possible snow next week will make it all better. Also, to A.M. ATL reader Mel and everyone else who has been attacked by a Canada goose: I feel your pain. (It has sharp teeth and a shockingly strong bite.) We’ll get through this together.
If you’re doing something cool this weekend, let me know at aj.willingham@ajc.com.
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Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at tellus@ajc.com.
Until next time.
