Judge dismisses Cobb County "Stop Cop City" case, says state violated defendants' due process rights: "The law in Georgia is clear"

A Cobb County Superior Court judge has dismissed charges against three activists connected to Georgia's "Stop Cop City" movement, ruling that prosecutors violated the defendants' constitutional due process rights by waiting nearly four years to bring the case.

In an order dated June 22, Judge Robert Flournoy III found that the lengthy delay was the result of a deliberate prosecutorial decision designed to give the state a tactical advantage.

"The delay here was the result of prosecutorial action attempting to give the State a tactical advantage," Flournoy wrote. "The delay in this case is solely attributable to the State's deliberate decision not to seek an indictment in this county while doing so promptly and with no issue in another county."

The case stems from a May 2022 protest. Defendants Dr. Hannah Kass, Tyler Norman and a third activist, collectively known by supporters as the "Cobb County 3," were indicted in Cobb County on April 23, 2026.

The charges involved conduct that had already been included in Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr's sweeping Stop Cop City racketeering case in Fulton County. That RICO prosecution was dismissed in December 2025 and is currently under appeal.

During a June 17 pretrial hearing, defense attorneys argued that the state's 47-month delay in seeking an indictment violated the defendants' due process rights. According to attorneys for the defendants, prosecutors acknowledged in court that they chose to pursue the Cobb County indictment only after the Fulton County RICO case was dismissed.

Flournoy also noted that the defendants are now facing legal battles in two courts over the same underlying conduct while the appeal of the Fulton County case continues.

"Once again, a trial court in Georgia checked the State's powers against old cases stemming from a powerful social movement," said attorney Xavier T. de Janon of the People's Law Collective, which represented Kass. "The law in Georgia is clear: the State cannot intentionally delay indictments to get a second bite at the apple."

Following the dismissal, Kass said the ruling could have implications for others previously charged in the broader Stop Cop City prosecution.

"The State admitted on the court record that the delay in our case was strategic and intentional," Kass said. "I have had potential prison time hanging over my head for four years and struggled to secure stable employment after earning my PhD due to Attorney General Chris Carr's continuous weaponization of political prosecutions against me and my co-defendants."

CBS News Atlanta interviewed criminal defense attorney Xavier T. de Janon, who explained that the ruling means the government cannot delay prosecuting cases indefinitely.

He said, "Due process requires that if the government has enough evidence, it must move forward with prosecution rather than letting cases hang over defendants for years."

The ruling marks another legal setback for Carr's office in its efforts to prosecute activists connected to opposition to Atlanta's public safety training center.

The state could seek to appeal the dismissal.

The decision does not end all legal proceedings involving the defendants. Earlier this month, federal prosecutors indicted two members of the Cobb County 3 under a separate federal case. 

Those prosecutions remain ongoing.