Charges dismissed against ex-Hawk in racial profiling case
Banks County prosecutors have dismissed felony drug charges against former Atlanta Hawk Mike Scott and his brother in light of a judge’s recent finding their arrest was the result of racial profiling.
In a remarkable ruling, Superior Court Judge Currie Mingledorff found the July 30, 2015, traffic stop of Scott and his brother, Antonn, to be unjustified, and for that reason he threw out the evidence seized in the case — 1.2 ounces of marijuana and 10.9 grams of ecstasy found in the Scotts' rented SUV.
Because the evidence has been suppressed, “insufficient evidence remains to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt,” District Attorney Brad Smith wrote in a motion to dismiss the case, which Mingledorff signed last week.
The judge's finding not only led to the dismissal of the case, it also led to the dismissal of Brent Register, who was a Banks County deputy when he made the arrest.
Through Open Records Act requests, the Scotts’ lawyers had found that Register had been forced to resign from two previous law enforcement agencies. They also determined that, while working in Banks County, he’d made hundreds of traffic stops along the expressway, yet issued only eight traffic tickets. Of the 47 people Register arrested, 44 were minorities, two were white and one was of unknown race.
In his order, Mingledorff found those numbers “truly shocking.” The judge said he did not believe Banks County deputies enforced the law “in a racially neutral manner” when stopping and apprehending the Scotts.
“We hope that this case will put an end to the illegal practices of the Banks County Sheriff’s Department,” the Scotts’ lawyers, Kevin Christopher and Billy Healan, said in a statement issued Monday. “This case stands as a reminder that police officers must follow the law, just like everyone else.”
About the Author
Bill Rankin has been an AJC reporter for more than 30 years. His father, Jim Rankin, worked as an editor for the newspaper for 26 years, retiring in 1986. Bill has primarily covered the state’s court system, doing all he can do to keep the scales of justice on an even keel. Since 2015, he has been the host of the newspaper’s Breakdown podcast.
