Atlanta City Council has OK’d millions in legal payouts this year to settle lawsuits and claims against the city, with the police and transportation departments racking up the biggest litigation costs.
City taxpayers have covered more than $12.6 million to end legal disputes in fiscal year 2023 from people who have accused the city of wrongdoing, according to the city’s law department. Cases ranged from tripping and falling in a city building to police brutality.
Lawsuits involving the Atlanta police had the highest settlement payout across departments totaling more than $4.6 million, or more than a third of the total cost to the city. The Transportation Department was targeted for the second-most payments, at $3.8 million.
But the city was far below the actual amount requested by plaintiffs — all the original litigation and claim demands combined before negotiations added up to more than $85.2 million.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution recently reported Atlanta could pay a nearly $4 million in a case where a man who died in Atlanta police custody last year was handcuffed face-down for more than 15 minutes, according to legal filings.
The case is among the 1,361 litigation matters currently open as of last week, according to the law department.
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Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
The grandmother of a recent shooting victim pleaded with City Council members last week to put more resources toward ending gun violence in the city’s southwest neighborhoods. A deadly shooting near the Mall West End on Sept. 23 took the lives of two people and the gunman in what police say was a “targeted” shooting.
Annie Ashmeade, the grandmother of 20-year-old Jakobi Maddox who was killed in the incident, said she and her husband took in Maddox — also known by his nickname “Slam” — and his brother after their parents were unable to care for them.
“I’ve sat dormant for the last few years watching all this crime in the West End area and other areas,” she said. “We need resources — we basically just need help in the community. This has to stop.”
Julious Khalid, a community advocate and owner of the YG Urban Cafe on Evan Street said that his family heard the shots outside when Maddox and the others were killed. Khalid urged city council to visit with West End residents and discuss community-based solutions to help ease gun violence.
“I witnessed two of these young brothers taking their last breath — the blood is still right in front of my building right now,” he said. “I’m calling on the city, Atlanta Police Department, I want to see what kind of strategy you guys have to really combat this community violence that’s going on.”
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An investigation done by inspector general’s office into the 2022 Senior Ball released last month raised eyebrows over unsanctioned spending by the mayor’s office. According to the report, the charges for the event blurred the lines between a city sponsored and private event. Costs for premium hotel rooms and room service violated city spending policies.
Shannon K. Manigault, the city’s inspector general, told City Council members that the policy prohibits the city from covering hotel expenses within the metro area.
“Here for the 2022 Senior Ball, rooms were booked for city of Atlanta employees and the Hyatt located clearly here in downtown Atlanta,” she said. “In addition, there were rooms that were booked and paid for non-city staff.”
Manigault said the investigation found 11 other instances within a seven month period where the mayor’s office requested unsanctioned payments be processed as a “professional courtesy.”
Theo Pace, deputy chief of staff for the mayor, told the Finance Executive Committee that in previous years, the event has been privately funded. The questionable $122,000 invoice to the Hyatt Regency, he said, was made to cover leftover costs.
“The 2022 event was the first Senior Ball that had occurred since COVID-19,” Pace said. “There was not enough privately-funded dollars that were raised for the event, which left the funding gap. The city has the obligation to pay its responsibilities as far as invoices.”
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Credit: Miguel Martinez
Credit: Miguel Martinez
