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Public speakers press Atlanta officials to fire officer Melvin Potter; council asks for investigation updates and staffing data
Summary
Relatives, advocates and community members urged the council to remove APD Officer Melvin Potter and demanded transparency on investigations; council members pressed police and law department staff for updates and counts of officers on specific dates.
Relatives of people killed or injured in police-involved incidents and criminal-justice advocates used the Public Safety and Legal Administration Committee’s July 14 public-comment period to press Atlanta officials to fire Atlanta Police Department Officer Melvin Potter and to press for quicker discipline and more transparency. The committee’s law department and several council members said they would request updates from investigative agencies and provide requested staffing data.
The appeals came from several speakers who identified themselves and their roles. Ayanna Lofton introduced herself as “the wife of Keith Lofton, who was injured in a police involved shooting back in July 07/25/2021,” and said she has been meeting with APD and the Atlanta Citizens Review Board. “APD have been responding back. We have been in meetings with APD, so things are moving forward,” Lofton said.
Devin Barrington Ward of the National Police Accountability Project described witness accounts from a Coweta County deputy who pulled over Potter in 2021…
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