Georgia law enforcement agencies are on high-alert this week in anticipation of a jury’s verdict in the trial of the former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin charged with the 2020 death of George Floyd.
The Atlanta Police Department, Georgia State Patrol, Fulton County Sheriff’s Office and other agencies are preparing for more protests over violence against Black people after demonstrations in Atlanta and across Georgia reached a fever pitch last year.
Thousands of people hit the streets in 2020 following the release of the cellphone recording showing Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck until he died and in response to the killing of 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery, a Black man chased down by three white men down a Brunswick-area street where one fatally shot him.
While Minnesota prosecutors are calling Chauvin’s trial a tragic instance of an overzealous cop, for many others, the case is another litmus test over whether white police officers will be held accountable when they are charged with committing crimes against Black people.
Jury deliberations began Monday evening after days of testimony that included defense arguments that Floyd could have died of a heart condition or drug reaction and Chauvin declining to testify. The trial started March 29.
Chauvin is charged with second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He could be convicted on all of the charges, some or none.
Atlanta Police Chief Rodney Bryant said Monday that the although department sees no indications of serious threats of violence, his command staff continues to monitor the situation.
“We will continue to do that from the date of the deliberations until the trial is completely over, ensuring that we maintain consistency throughout our city and be able to respond to all law enforcement type calls,” Bryant said during a Monday press briefing outside police headquarters.
Georgia public safety agencies are trying to avoid some of the confrontations that played out last year, including Atlanta police officers' controversial arrests of two college students and the shooting death of Atlanta’s Rayshard Brooks in a Wendy’s parking lot after scuffling with officers.
Bryant was named interim chief after Chief Erika Shields resigned in the wake of Brooks’ death.
When last year’s peaceful late spring protests in Atlanta devolved into nighttime rioting, Gov. Brian Kemp called in the National Guard to protect property in Atlanta, which prompted more tense moments.
Atlanta NAACP President Richard Rose said he expects that crowds will swell around downtown Atlanta no matter the outcome of the Chauvin case. Rose said he’s concerned that a large number of officers coming out could trigger an emotional flashpoint.
“It absolutely could impact people’s conduct and, unfortunately, one outburst can engender another outburst,” Rose said. “And so we have to be really concerned about police presence, especially if the verdict is not just.”
Bryant said his officers are better equipped to handle demonstrations this time around because of an early ramping up of constant communication among federal, state, and local law enforcement.
Talks began last week to develop a strategy for the ways the outcome of the trial might spur demonstrations on the streets.
“In the city of Atlanta, one of the things we pride ourselves on is we support people having the right to demonstrate,” Bryant said. “We deal with some form of demonstrations and protests in the city almost every day, and many of them go along very peacefully.
“We anticipate there will be peaceful protests… but we will also recognize that there are times that there becomes a level of civil unrest, and we are prepared for that as well,” Bryant later added.
Chauvin’s trial is not only about getting justice for Floyd’s family but also about taking a stand against the racism and police brutality that’s occurred throughout the nation’s history, Rose said.
“We claim that Derek Chauvin is wrong and that he should be punished but the system produces Derek Chauvin,” he said. “It produces other situations where Black men and women are killed.
“So I’m hopeful that this outcome is just, but I think either way, America does need to speak out,” Rose said. “It should be peaceful. I think we should show up to say, ‘yes, we agree with this,’ verdict or ‘no, we don’t agree,’ but we should not be silent.”
Civil unrest over the last year also spurred Kemp to order the installation of a security fence around the Capitol grounds to ward off unruly demonstrators getting too close to the building or to public officials.
This year’s legislative session kicked off Jan. 11 with armored vehicles and a much larger number of state troopers and police than normal protecting the grounds after a far-right mob stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 in a deadly insurrection.
So far, workers have erected about 25% of the 8-foot metal fence, with the goal of wrapping up the project in early June, according to the Georgia Building Authority.
This story comes to GPB through a reporting partnership with Georgia Recorder.
