ATLANTA — Protesters dressed in all black threw large rocks, bricks, Molotov cocktails and fireworks at police officers Sunday at the construction site for the new Atlanta Police Department training facility, according to police.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp on Monday condemned the violence, saying those involved put “destruction and vandalism” over “legitimate protest.”
“As I’ve said before, domestic terrorism will NOT be tolerated in this state,” Kemp said in a statement. “As we continue to respect peaceful protest, we will also continue to ensure safety in our communities. We will not rest until those who use violence and intimidation for an extremist end are brought to full justice.”
Several pieces of construction equipment were set on fire, Atlanta police Chief Darin Schierbaum said during a news conference around midnight. Some 35 people had been detained as other police agencies stepped in to assist the city’s officers.
“Actions such as this will not be tolerated,” Schierbaum said. “When you attack law enforcement officers, when you damage equipment, you are breaking the law.”
Investigators believe those involved had initially attended a nearby music festival before beginning what was described by police as a “coordinated attack” at the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center site, near Bouldercrest Road and Key Road in DeKalb County.
No officers were injured during the incident, Schierbaum said. They used non-lethal enforcement methods to help disperse the crowd and detain those involved, he said.
“This was a very violent attack, very violent attack,” Schierbaum said. “This wasn’t about a public safety training center. This was about anarchy and this was about the attempt to be stabilized, and we are addressing that quickly.”
The names of those in custody and the criminal charges were not immediately available Monday. But the police chief said many were not from the Atlanta area.
A number of protesters, most from out of state, face charges of domestic terrorism and a litany of other offenses stemming from an incident that left downtown Atlanta windows smashed and an Atlanta police car torched. Defendants in that case include a “brand ambassador” from Pittsburgh, a biology student (on the dean’s list) from the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga and the son of a millionaire surgeon who grew up in a mansion in Kennebunkport, Maine.
“The state of Georgia has shamefully chosen to pursue ‘domestic terrorism’ charges against environmental activists engaging in First Amendment-protected speech and civil disobedience,” said Matt Bass, an attorney representing some of the defendants. “My clients will vigorously defend their constitutional rights, and look forward to their day in court where they will have their names cleared.”
“This was not a protest,” Schierbaum said after the Sunday night incident. “This is criminal activity and the criminal charges will show that.”
The Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, Sandy Springs police and the Georgia State Patrol assisted Atlanta officers during the violence. Both the GBI and FBI were also notified and are assisting with the investigation, Atlanta police said.
Various groups who have protested against the site view the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center as an effort by Atlanta to “militarize” the police while also compromising the environment by building a center on land that they say should be preserved and cleaned up. The city says the center is a much-needed and long-overdue training facility for Atlanta’s police officers and firefighters.
The conflict over the project attracted national attention after a Georgia State Patrol trooper in January fatally shot protester Manuel Teran at the training site. The GBI said Teran shot first and wounded the trooper as the state tried to clear the property of protesters.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said last week that the city is creating a new task force to address concerns surrounding the site.
In December when a fire was reported, a dumpster was set ablaze at the site and police were greeted by a group of protesters who hurled rocks at firefighters and set off firecrackers, according to Atlanta and DeKalb police.
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