Forty-two Atlanta Police Department officers resigned between June 1 and Aug. 21—twice the number of officers who left the department in the first three months of 2020. Based on numbers compiled from police records by The Center Square publication, it is an incredible comparison to the number of officers who left the department at the same time in 2019: Just four officers.
The recent increase in resignations and retirements is occurring due to the summer riots, looting and lack of due process for officers who have been fired and criminally charged over shooting incidents.
An African-American named Rayshard Brooks was shot and killed in June while resisting arrest and fleeing from a Wendy’s parking lot in Atlanta. Subsequent protests evolved into riots where police were attacked, their vehicles destroyed and properties were looted and destroyed throughout Georgia’s capital city. Police were initially told to stand down by Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and Gov. Brian Kemp eventually had to call in the National Guard.
According to records obtained by The Center Square, most of the officers who resigned from the Atlanta Police Department may have forfeited their full pension in the past three months. “Officers must work for the department for 10 years to be 100 percent vested in the retirement system. The average number of years of service for the officers who resigned between June 1 to Aug. 21 was about 3.4 years,” the publications reports.
