Atlanta officers can’t sue former city officials who fired them for Tasing students

ATLANTA — A federal appeals court has ruled that three Atlanta police officers who were fired and later reinstated cannot sue former city officials.

Mark Gardner, Lonnie Hood and Ivory Streeter were fired after two students were pulled from their car and Tased during the May 2020 protests in downtown Atlanta.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Former Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields and former Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said a video showed a clear use of excessive force. Former Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard also filed charges, which were later dropped.

The Atlanta Civil Service Board later ruled that the officers’ jobs should be reinstated, saying the city didn’t follow its termination policy and denied the officers due process.

The group tried to sue Shields, Bottoms, Howard and the Fulton County government, but a district court dismissed the lawsuit. The appeals court backed up their ruling.

“The district court dismissed each claim, finding that the officers had not plausibly established a cause of action against any of the defendants. After careful review and with the benefit of oral argument, we agree that the officers cannot plausibly support a viable claim for relief and affirm the district court’s dismissal of the second amended complaint.”

Read the ruling below.

Officers appeal denied by WSB-TV Assignment Desk on Scribd