Media Contact: Kathryn Hamoudah 404/688-1202 or [email protected]

 Atlanta, Ga—On September 9, 2025, Fulton County Superior Judge Kevin Farmer informed attorneys involved in the “Stop Cop City” RICO case that a formal order dismissing the racketeering charges against all 61 individuals named in the indictment is forthcoming. His announcement came shortly after attorneys for the Defense and State completed arguments on a Motion to Dismiss and Quash the Indictment.

In response to the increasing attacks waged by prosecutors and legislators on the right to dissent, the Southern Center for Human Rights created the First Amendment Lawyer Bridge, (“The Bridge”) in the summer of 2023, shortly before the announcement of Fulton County indictment 23SC189192, which is believed to be the largest criminal racketeering case ever filed against protestors in U.S. history. The Bridge is a formalized lawyer pairing project that provides compensation to attorneys representing people arrested while in the exercise of their First Amendment rights. The Bridge worked to pair 54 of the 61 individuals named in this case with attorneys. In addition to working to ensure legal representation for persons prosecuted for exercising their right to dissent, The Bridge also provides educational opportunities unique to mass prosecution and criminalization of the First Amendment rights, to all attorneys on the case, including those privately retained.

Today’s ruling by Judge Farmer comes amid a week where 64 motions filed by defense counsel were to be argued. The motions include attacks on the indictment for the improper use of the RICO statute, for the legal insufficiencies for alleging RICO, for the unconstitutionally overbroad and vague use of the Domestic Terrorism statute, and a First Amendment challenge to the RICO count, among many other challenges. Today’s announced dismissal applies to Counts One and Three of the indictment, RICO and Arson, respectively. Count Two, charging five of the sixty-one people with Domestic Terrorism, remains. However, a motion regarding the constitutionality of that charge is pending. Attorneys will report to court on Wednesday, September 10^th to learn Judge Farmer’s intended course of action for that charge.

“We are grateful for the zealous representation provided by the attorneys in this case in defense of their clients and the First Amendment right to dissent. Whether paired by the Bridge or not, SCHR depends on our colleagues in the bar willing to stand firm in the face of political repression,” said Tiffany Roberts, director of SCHR’s Public Policy Unit. 

The First Amendment Lawyer Bridge is a lawyer-pairing pairing project of the Southern Center for Human Rights. The project endeavors to ensure reliable access to counsel for individuals charged in connection with the exercise of their First Amendment right to speech and association in Metro Atlanta. 

The Southern Center for Human Rights is working for equality, dignity, and justice for people impacted by the criminal legal system in the Deep South. SCHR fights for a world free from mass incarceration, the death penalty, the criminalization of poverty, and racial injustice.