“Baton Bob” Jamerson today accused the Atlanta Police Department of violating his constitutional rights during a June 26 arrest in Midtown's Colony Square. He made the claim in a message posted to his personal Facebook page.
Jamerson's arrest came on the same day that the U.S. Supreme Court released rulings on two cases involving same-sex marriage rights. News of Jamerson's arrest quickly made the rounds through local news outlets.
Jamerson says the real story of how the arrest happened, and how he was treated while in custody, shows an anti-gay bias at the Atlanta Police Department and a disregard for civil liberties and constitutional rights.
When the manager of a bar crosses the street to unwittingly ask a table of city of Atlanta employees, including an off-duty cop, to come on over to his bar and enjoy all-you-can-drink beer for $10 after the official bar closing time of 3 a.m., he probably has only himself (and maybe his boss) to thank for being raided.
At about 4:30 a.m. on June 9, the East Atlanta bar named Asylum, owned by Brian Michael Sawyer, was investigated by the Atlanta Police Department. Many in Atlanta's LGBT community may remember Sawyer from other shenanigans, including bilking LGBT organizations out of promised donations.
The only person charged on June 9 was Asylum's manager, Couri Antonio Williams, with selling liquor after hours. The APD police report states 83 patrons exited the club after Williams shut down the club.
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A man who was denied employment with the Atlanta Police Department because he is HIV positive will receive a $250,000 settlement from the city.
"We are pleased with this resolution and expect that the city of Atlanta will never let this happen again," said Scott Schoettes, HIV project director for Lambda Legal, the non-profit group that represented the anonymous plaintiff, identified in court records as "Richard Roe."
"People with HIV are working in law enforcement all across this country, and there is no reason their service should not be welcomed and encouraged by the Atlanta Police Department," Schoettes said in a press release announcing the settlement.
The settlement announcement today comes six months after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit sent the case back to the federal district court to resolve unaddressed issues.
With 50 surveillance cameras located throughout Atlantic Station’s 138-acre complex of residences and retail businesses, finding out exactly when and where a gay man said he was assaulted on the property is apparently no easy task.
Atlantic Station security personnel are still poring through “hours and hours” of video as part of its investigation into the alleged Aug. 4 attack on John Mark Parker, 50, as he was walking to the Fenuxe Fire Party in the former Fox Sports Grill.
“I know we are working closely with the Atlanta Police Department and working closely with them to go through hours and hours of footage,” said Elizabeth Hagin, spokesperson for Atlantic Station. “Everything we have so far has been turned over to APD.”
A gay man was attacked in Atlantic Station on Saturday night after being asked if he was gay by an unknown male who fled the scene on foot, according to a friend of the victim. The assailant has not yet been arrested, according to a statement from the Atlanta Police Department.
The victim was going to the Fenuxe Fire Party when he was attacked. The Fire Party was held at the Old Fox Grill at 261 19th St.
Three young men who beat a gay man in southwest Atlanta while shouting “faggot” at him were sentenced July 13 to serve five years in prison with another five years on probation.
Fulton Superior Court T. Jackson Bedford sentenced Christopher Cain, 18; Dorian Moragne, 19; and Darael Williams, 17, as several loved ones of the defendants audibly cried in court. All men were already on probation for other crimes.
Another defendant, Javaris Bradford, has eluded police and a warrant is out for his arrest. FBI officials say Bradford is the one who videotaped the Feb. 4 attack that was uploaded to a hip hop website and went viral, making the beating a national story. He faces the same charges as the other three defendants: participation in criminal gang activity, robbery by force and two counts of aggravated assault.