New court date set for activists who served “People’s Stop Work Order”
The arraignment of five individuals in the Stop Cop City movement was canceled on Tuesday by the State Court of DeKalb County. The next hearing in their cases is a calendar call on July 9, 2025.
Attorney Drago Cepar, Jr., who represents one of the individuals, said in an interview, “The case is in a very early stage,” noting that court hearing cancellations are granted at the discretion of a judge, can be due to a number of reasons, and are procedural.
Arraignment, also known as an initial appearance, is a hearing during which a person accused of a crime is informed of the charges against them and has the opportunity to plead guilty or not guilty. In Georgia, arraignment can be waived.
On Sept. 7, 2023, five individuals, three of whom are faith leaders, protested the destruction of the Weelaunee forest to build the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, also known as Cop City. In an act of resistance, faith leaders chained themselves to bulldozers to stop construction. They were later arrested while delivering a People’s Stop Work Order at the Cop City construction site.
“We are religious people guided by our faith to stand up and protect the land,” Ayeola Kaplan said in cell phone footage she recorded the day of the protest. “We are here with the support of not just the people, but the forest, and the environmental protection movement globally.”
The People’s Stop Work Order was issued by community members for violations that included “destruction of a forest, destruction of public trust, polluting Intrenchment Creek, violating the will of the community, and undermining the democratic referendum process.”
In April 2023, DeKalb County’s Planning and Sustainability Department issued a stop work order to halt construction after county inspectors observed “the required silt fence and other erosion control measures were malfunctioning,” according to a press release. Within hours, the order was lifted, allowing construction to resume.
Construction of the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center is near complete and will open Spring 2025, according to a social media post from the Atlanta Police Department. Estimated costs to build the facility have reached $115 million.
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On Tuesday, during what would have been the faith leaders’ arraignment, members of Fire Ant Movement Defense gathered outside the DeKalb County courthouse with banners. In a press release, Fire Ant Movement Defense called attention to “the unprecedented political repression of the movement to save the Weelaunee Forest and prevent Cop City from being built.” The group says “the repression in Atlanta comes as the U.S. government marches toward fascism and further racism.”
According to Amnesty International, protest is a protected human right and repression of those rights is on the rise. With increased militarization of local and state law enforcement agencies and with governments “painting protesters as a threat to public safety,” these tactics are meant to silence dissent.
The five individuals all face trespassing and obstruction charges, while Cepar’s client faces an additional charge of reckless conduct. All charges are misdemeanors.
Cepar said, “We have entered a plea of not guilty and that’s where we’re at.” He anticipates his client and the other individuals will be offered pre-trial diversion but insists “the official confirmation will come from a prosecutor.”
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