Atlanta Faces Scrutiny Over Unfulfilled Transparency Promises
In a controversy highlighting Atlanta’s commitment to transparency, activists have voiced concerns about the city’s handling of police brutality allegations. A website intended to track police encounters has been inoperative for an extended period. This raises questions about the city’s dedication to its 2020 reform promises.
The use-of-force dashboard, unveiled after a summer of protests, was designed to improve transparency and foster trust between the public and the Atlanta Police Department (APD). However, activists point out that the dashboard, which details police encounters involving force, has not been updated since 2023. Supposed to receive quarterly updates, the site shows no new data for 2024. A message on the page acknowledges data visualization errors. It also states that efforts are underway to resolve them.
The Dickens administration and APD responded with a statement explaining ongoing efforts to integrate older websites from previous administrations with current information. They suggest data can still be obtained through open records requests. Devin Franklin of the Southern Center for Human Rights expressed his disappointment. He asserts that the justice reform initiative was intended to eliminate the need for such requests. “I do believe that it’s actually part of a movement for the people, but I’m not sure that the elected officials have totally bought into that concept,” Franklin said.
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