REPORT: 70 Atlanta police officers resign after murder charges against Officer Rolfe

by The Right Scoop

I know this isn’t much for the basis of a report, but the wife of an Atlanta police officer tweeted an hour ago that 70 officers have resigned from the force:

 
If that’s true that is huge! And I suspect it is true, as she would probably know.

Last night she identified herself as the wife of an Atlanta police officer:

 
Here are a few of her other tweets for context:

 
She even screenshotted this plea for help from a staffing agency:

 
All of that said, so far I can’t find anything to corroborate her numbers thus far. But I did find the AP reporting on more walkouts today:

Atlanta police officers called out sick Thursday to protest the filing of murder charges against an officer who shot a man in the back, while the interim chief acknowledged members of the force feel abandoned amid protests demanding massive changes to policing.

Interim Chief Rodney Bryant told The Associated Press in an interview that the sick calls began Wednesday night and continued Thursday, but said the department has sufficient staff to protect the city. It’s not clear how many officers have called out.

“Some are angry. Some are fearful. Some are confused on what we do in this space. Some may feel abandoned,” Bryant said of the officers. “But we are there to assure them that we will continue to move forward and get through this.”

While some have hailed the prosecutor’s office for moving quickly in the Brooks killing, Bryant said he was surprised at the speed, noting that the Georgia Bureau of Investigation hadn’t yet finished looking into it.

He would not say how many officers called out. But just one officer showed up for work Thursday morning in one zone, which several dozen are assigned to patrol, according to Vince Champion, southeast regional director for the International Brotherhood of Police Officers.

Atlanta officers are walking off their shifts or not responding to calls because they feel “abandoned, betrayed, used in a political game,” Champion told the AP.

Champion said he’s heard from several officers that they fear using force to protect themselves will get them fired or arrested.

Note the article says “just one officer showed up for work Thursday morning in one zone, which several dozen are assigned to patrol”. This is another reason why I believe these mass resignations could be true.

Another reason I believe it’s true is because Atlanta police officers suddenly got a $500 bonus for working hard during the protests:

Like $500 is going to fix the damage this mayor and DA had done to the Atlanta police department.

Oh, and just to be clear….


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