A second lawsuit focused on police actions during a 2009 raid of a Midtown gay bar is expected to be filed by men who also want to be compensated and want the Atlanta Police Department to put in place promised changes in policy and procedure, their lawyer said Tuesday.
“It is time for the city of Atlanta to put the Eagle matter to rest, but time and again the actions of the city show that city leaders just do not get it," said Gerry Weber, one of the lawyers representing Eagle customers and employees. "The Eagle raid victims should all be fairly compensated and reforms must be fully implemented.”
Dan Grossman, the other lawyer in the case, said the second suit would be filed by Friday, the day before the two-year anniversary of the raid and the day the statute of limitations runs out.
He said a second suit will include men who came forward too late to be part of the first case -- which the city settled for $1.2 million in December -- as well as those who stayed out of the issue initially for professional reasons that have since been resolved. Grossman didn't know how many men will eventually be a part of the second case.
On Sept. 10, 2009, Atlanta police officers swarmed the Atlanta Eagle bar based on reports of illegal activity. Patrons and employees said they were forced to lie on the floor while officers checked for criminal histories and others peppered them with anti-gay slurs.
But Grossman and Weber have complained in court filings that the city is not following through on the changes within the Police Department that were promised in the settlement.
"They still haven’t fully complied with the agreement [in the first lawsuit],” Grossman said.
City Attorney Cathy Hampton did not respond to telephone or email messages seeking comment.
The changes that have not taken place, Grossman said, include steps by the APD to "deter officers from destroying evidence."
He also said the agency is not documenting certain warrantless checks and identification checks, a practice that was to have started Dec. 8.
Grossman said the APD also continues to tell officers in uniform or dressed in civilian clothes but displaying a badge that they don’t have to give their names if they “feel it would compromise their safety."
"The safety issue applies to undercover cops," Grossman said. "They’re still training officers that they can decline at their own discretion.”
The APD declined to comment, referring questions about a possible lawsuit to the City Law Department.
An independent three-month investigation confirmed on June 27 reports of what happened the night of the Atlanta Eagle raid. The team of outside lawyers, led by former U.S. Attorney Joe Whitley, produced a 340-page report of the findings. The city has declined to say how much taxpayers paid for that outside review.
Said Grossman: “The city has once again chosen the most expensive and difficult way to resolve this painful matter.”
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