FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Atlanta Solidarity Fund
Atlanta Solidarity Fund Announces Dismissal of Charges, Condemns State Repression
Atlanta, GA – The Atlanta Solidarity Fund (ASF) announces that all 15 counts of money laundering against the ASF 3 have been dropped as of yesterday, marking another serious setback to the already troubled indictment brought by the Georgia Attorney General’s office against Stop Cop City activists.
“This is a recognition of what we, police, and prosecutors have known for a long time: we run a legitimate nonprofit, not a money laundering operation, and there has never been any evidence otherwise.” said Marlon Kautz, one of the three ASF defendants.
Over the course of the Stop Cop City movement, there have been over 100 arrests, a testament to the lengths authorities will go to silence dissent. Adele MacLean, another ASF defendant, said “What’s shocking is that the authorities have gotten this far before having to admit they have no case. They conducted extensive invasive surveillance against us and other organizers, authorized a militarized SWAT raid on our home, jailed us, closed ASF’s bank accounts and cut us off from donors—all under the false pretense that we were laundering money.”
Dismissing these charges does nothing to undo the harm inflicted on ASF and the many political protesters whose lives have been drastically impacted. Kautz explained “Prosecutions against political movements are not a pursuit of justice. They are a weaponization of a legal system designed to control and disempower the poor, the Black, the indigenous, and other marginalized people. Today, it’s being used to crush dissent against Cop City. Unless we all stand up against the continuing political prosecution of activists, this same strategy will be used against social movements again and again.”
The ASF 3 still face a baseless RICO charge, along with 58 other activists. ASF continues to support anyone targeted for political repression. Kautz said “This case is far from over, but we are committed to fighting these charges in solidarity with all other Cop City defendants, until everyone is free. We believe that we will win.”
As we acknowledge this legal victory, we also reflect on the ongoing repression of Cop City protests. Just days ago marked the one-year anniversary of the submission of over 116,000 signatures for a petition to initiate a referendum against Cop City—signatures that the city has refused to count. This comes amid a climate of escalating state violence, including the tragic killing of Manuel Esteban “Tortuguita” Paez Teran by police on January 18, 2023, and the violent raids on four houses in February 2024. Judge Kimberly Adams, presiding over the RICO case, has chastised state prosecutors for “gross negligence” over improper handling of evidence, and Dekalb County DA Sherry Boston previously publicly distanced herself from the Cop City prosecutions.
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