Atlanta City Council Approves Police Reform Legislation

ATLANTA, GA—Atlanta City Council passed a number of new legislation Tuesday night, including new police reform measures.

The council approved legislation to adopt the “8 Can’t Wait” principles and amended the Atlanta Police Department’s standard operating procedures to incorporate use of force alternatives.

The “8 Can’t Wait” platform is part of Campaign Zero, a police reform initiative. According to city council, the reforms in the legislation aim to improve community interactions with the police and reduce the number of violent encounters through the following principles:

• Banning chokeholds and strangleholds
• Requiring de-escalation strategies
• Requiring a warning before shooting
• Exhausting all alternatives before shooting
• Duty to intervene (from other officers)
• Banning shooting at moving vehicles
• Requiring use of force continuum
• Requiring comprehensive reporting involving use of force against civilians.

Other items approved during the meeting include:
• An ordinance to designate Juneteenth as a City paid holiday
• A resolution approving a deployment plan for funds allocated for rental assistance through the consumer grant program in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
• A resolution to create a participatory engagement process with the community to select a street where a permanent “Black Lives Matter” mural can be installed in Atlanta.
• An ordinance to provide a one-year application fee waiver for right-of-way dining permits. The legislation is aimed at promoting social distancing and providing financial relief to restaurant owners.
• An ordinance ratifying Executive Order 2020-106, ordering the implementation of a process by which City of Atlanta boards, authorities, commissions, committees, or other similar bodies may begin remote meetings in accordance with the Georgia Open Meetings Act.