Federal lawsuit filed against Atlanta police over raid at gay club

Geoffrey Calhoun was at the gay bar at the time of the raid and said some officers didn't identify themselves as police.

[Creative1]

This from the "most sophisticated city in the South".....

Wow! Maybe the Atlanta Police should get out their hoods and burn a cross in front of
The Eagle.

[dante2810]

This will never make it to trial.
The department would have to allow 48 depositions, 48 motions for discovery and copies of all the paperwork leading up to this and aftermath. They will settle.

While the haters are going to decry suing the "good guys", we all know that many departments like this will never change unless you hit them where they can feel it the most, their budgets.

BTW.. their Wal-Mart example is spot on as to the many things wrong with this violation of rights.

[McMike]

dante2810 wrote:

This will never make it to trial.
The department would have to allow 48 depositions, 48 motions for discovery and copies of all the paperwork leading up to this and aftermath. They will settle.
While the haters are going to decry suing the "good guys", we all know that many departments like this will never change unless you hit them where they can feel it the most, their budgets.
BTW.. their Wal-Mart example is spot on as to the many things wrong with this violation of rights.

Hopefully the patrons will not settle. There are many of us who have been on the end of a homophobic cop trying to prove how "manly" he is. The irony is when it happened to me the cops who were trying to prove a point where total closet cases.

[MikeNSF]

Millions of dollars later and a boatload of bad publicity, some heads are going to roll at the APD. LOL

[Ralph]

Hm...maybe the KKK is still alive and well, just disguised as the Atalanta Police Department. So they were looking for drugs etc. and found none. Who informed the police of this? Just a lame excuse to harrase gay people. The entire police force needs a shake down from the top down. I will make sure I don't even travel thought Atlanta while on travel. Not even a layover in the airport. I won't support a city that doesn't support ALL of its citizens. Gay people should all boycott the city untill the police chief is fired for allowing this to happen.

[writewingproxyco ntin]

dante2810 wrote:

This will never make it to trial.
The department would have to allow 48 depositions, 48 motions for discovery and copies of all the paperwork leading up to this and aftermath. They will settle.
While the haters are going to decry suing the "good guys", we all know that many departments like this will never change unless you hit them where they can feel it the most, their budgets.

I agree point for point, and that all is progress. It might never be sufficient payback for the patrons who were victimized, but over time even settlements like this will add up to real change.

[Eric]

Ralph wrote:

Hm...maybe the KKK is still alive and well, just disguised as the Atalanta Police Department. So they were looking for drugs etc. and found none. Who informed the police of this? Just a lame excuse to harrase gay people. The entire police force needs a shake down from the top down. I will make sure I don't even travel thought Atlanta while on travel. Not even a layover in the airport. I won't support a city that doesn't support ALL of its citizens. Gay people should all boycott the city untill the police chief is fired for allowing this to happen.

Amen to that Ralph.. I like your attitude, I too will NEVER pass through atlanta, not even a layover in their airport... Also, I agree with another poster who said it's nothing more than insecure cops trying to prove their manly hood...Truth is, those men in that bar that evening conducted themselves like real men... I hope they don't give up, even if it takes ten years.. make a point that we are not to be F'd with... I'm tired of it too. I'm a victim myself of three bashers and was almost killed and I was treated as the perverted F=g. The cops treated me as if I was contageous. I still have PTSD and look behind my shoulder, thirteen years later.... There is alot of mean, hatefilled intolerant S.O.B's out there... Be careful and we need to take care of eachother, brothers!

[Speedieg]

ATLANTA (AP)- Atlanta Police Chief Richard Pennington announced Tuesday that he will resign at the end of the year.

Pennington’s top deputy, Alan Dreher, also announced his departure Tuesday, saying he would leave the department Dec. 8.

The two had worked together in Washington, D.C. Pennington was hired away from the New Orleans Police Department in May 2002 after a five-month search.

Pennington was credited with cleaning up the New Orleans department and more than 350 police officers were indicted, fired or disciplined for misconduct under his tenure.

He said crime is down 25 percent, but the statistics haven’t appeased a growing number of detractors. A series of brazen crimes this year has led to widespread criticism of Pennington’s leadership.

The 62-year-old said he has no plans to leave Atlanta and will do some consulting work among other projects

[fuzi]

The fact that Atlanta will soon be rid of Pennington and Mayor Franklin is a positive step to making the city better. Under Franklin and Pennington, Atlanta has descended into a racially and philosophically disastrous quagmire of corruption and inefficiency. Both of them should be run out of town and never allowed to return. I hope that TRUE CHANGE can occur with the election of Mary Norwood to the Mayor's office. The alternative, Kasim Reed, is just more of the same corrupt political machine that has ruined Atlanta over the last 20 years.

[tomk from ny]

to eric from toledo, ohio, you are so on it. i, too have been discriminated by both civilians and police. and you are right, we need to take care of each other.

[Creative1]

I would like to point out that Delta Airlines has major hub in Atlanta and they have been very gay friendly.

Lets pick and choose VERY carefully who and how we target.

[Travis A]

all the cops involved should lose their jobs...

[writewingproxyco ntin]

tomk from ny wrote:

i, too have been discriminated by both civilians and police

Yeah, but only the police have badges and guns, you know, to protect and serve...that is, when they're not sodomizing you with a broomstick in the Bronx station house or running pre Stonewall raids in Atlanta.

That ol' blue wall of silence.

[DNF]

Ralph wrote:

Hm...maybe the KKK is still alive and well, just disguised as the Atalanta Police Department. So they were looking for drugs etc. and found none. Who informed the police of this? Just a lame excuse to harrase gay people. The entire police force needs a shake down from the top down. I will make sure I don't even travel thought Atlanta while on travel. Not even a layover in the airport. I won't support a city that doesn't support ALL of its citizens. Gay people should all boycott the city untill the police chief is fired for allowing this to happen.

Ex Chief of Police Timmoney from Miami is job hunting again. Atlanta sounds more and more like a good fit for him!

Kudos to Lambda Legal and the plaintiffs. Don't settle this out of court.

Remember Harvey Milk!

[DNF]

Eric wrote:

<quoted text>Amen to that Ralph.. I like your attitude, I too will NEVER pass through atlanta, not even a layover in their airport... Also, I agree with another poster who said it's nothing more than insecure cops trying to prove their manly hood...Truth is, those men in that bar that evening conducted themselves like real men... I hope they don't give up, even if it takes ten years.. make a point that we are not to be F'd with... I'm tired of it too. I'm a victim myself of three bashers and was almost killed and I was treated as the perverted F=g. The cops treated me as if I was contageous. I still have PTSD and look behind my shoulder, thirteen years later.... There is alot of mean, hatefilled intolerant S.O.B's out there... Be careful and we need to take care of eachother, brothers!

On my way to Florida I passed through Atlanta. The staff at the bus terminal there make me think of Julia Sugarbaker in a very bad mood.

I too have been bashed, have had friends killed only for the police to respond that it was an attempted robbery (no cash taken and all rings and jewlery still on my dead friends bodies).

Oh Timmoney was in charge in Balt. then as well. Go figure. These Chiefs of Police are beginning to remind me of what the Catholic Church did since the early 30's with their sex offender priests. Move em to a new city and hope no one notices.

I also notice that over the last 2 years not one "family values" group has spoken out and condemned the attacks on us and on children. Lawrence King shot at school. Silence from the kkkristians. A teen here in Florida set on fire. Silence again. Simmie Williams blamed for being seen often on Sistrunk Blvd in Ft. Lauderdale.