Georgia grand jury indicts 60+ individuals on #StopCopCity RICO charges

A Georgia grand jury indicted over 60 individuals linked to this week on racketeering and terrorism charges related to the on-going violent campaign in opposition to the construction of a police training facility outside Atlanta, Georgia which opponents have nicknamed Cop City.

According to the indictment, Defend the Atlanta Forest is a “self-identified coalition and enterprise of militant anarchists, eco-activists and community organizers” engaged in the use of “direct action” tactics, including violence against law enforcement, arson, and destruction of government property, to “prevent the construction of the Atlanta Police Public Safety Training Center” while “promoting virulent anarchist ideals.”

Because a shared ideology is central to the formation of the alleged criminal enterprise, the indictment explains several relevant elements of anarchist thought, including important concepts such as “mutual aid”, “solidarity actions”, how anarchists justify violence as a form of collective self-defense, and the importance of “occupying” autonomous zones of control. The indictment also covers the important role of online anarchist “ ‘zines” which provide calls to action, disseminate tactics, and conduct after action reviews of attacks.

According to the state’s theory of the case, Marlon Scott Kautz, Adele Maclean and Savannah Patterson, the principal members of an Atlanta-based organization known as “The Network for Strong Communities” also ran the Atlanta Solidarity Fund (ASF), an organization, described as a “bail fund” which principally existed to provide bail money and support for arrested protestors engaged in the illegal occupation of the training center building site.  The indictment notes that despite its claims to the contrary, the organization does not support genuine indigent defendants, only those with their specific beliefs and ideology. These funds and accompanying moral and emotional support are used both to bind the group together and can be withdrawn in the event an individual should consider betraying the group.

Importantly, the state argues that the Network for Strong Communities deliberately co-mingled funds donated for a variety of allegedly charitable purposes and directed the funds instead towards supporting the forest occupation. They reportedly did this by establishing a Forest Justice Defense Fund, which provided direct reimbursement to “Forest Defenders” for a variety of items, including surveillance equipment, communications gear and even ammunition. While the Network for Strong Communities purported to be merely the “fiscal host” for FJDF, the indictment alleges they were run by the same three individuals.

Several websites, all of which contained donation links for the Forest Justice Defense Fund, engaged in overt solicitation of violence and illegal acts. One site identified by the indictment as “the Scene Blog” included an overt reference indicating that it was run by the Defend the Atlanta Forest movement. It is alleged that Maclean, Petterson and Kautz participated in publishing threats and claims of responsibilities on site, including both attacks in and around Atlanta and ranging as far as Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Oregon, and Florida.

The state of Georgia has now shown that given competent police work and a thorough understanding of ideology, major cases, including conspiracy, money laundering, and terrorism, can be brought against the organizers and participants of anarchist violence. It is now readily apparent that claims, made by leading federal law enforcement officials that anarchist violence is perpetrated solely by lone individuals and lacks any larger organization or structure is simply false, and a justification for inaction.