ATLANTA — The Atlanta Police Department has released the body camera video that shows the arrest of a Douglas County judge who is now facing charges, including a felony.
The incident took place early Thursday morning around 3:15 a.m. outside of Red Martini Restaurant and Lounge in Buckhead.
Douglas County Probate Judge Christina Peterson is charged with felony willful obstruction of a police officer by using threats or violence and simple battery against a police officer, according to Fulton County Jail records.
Warrants from the Fulton County Magistrate Court stated that Peterson allegedly "struck an officer with a closed fist." The court documents also revealed that the officer was investigating a dispute between two people at the lounge. Warrants stated that Peterson was not involved in the initial altercation.
Atlanta Police released video of the incident Friday night. On their YouTube channel, they released a condensed, nearly five-minute version of Peterson's arrest. APD also released a longer version, which is over two hours. 11Alive is still going through the full, unedited version.
What APD bodycam video showed
In the condensed body camera video released by Atlanta Police, the video begins with police walking in the parking lot outside the Buckhead lounge in the 3000 block of Peachtree Road NE.
The responding officer walks closer to the nightclub, where there appears to be an ongoing confrontation. A security guard at the location then grabs a woman, which Atlanta Police described as security separating the people who were involved in the altercation.
The officer then walks up to the security guard and the woman and tells the woman to "chill" several times. The woman appears to be yelling about a man who she was involved in an altercation with, saying, "He just touched me for no reason."
As the officer and the security guard try to calm the woman down and remove her from the situation, that's when Peterson walks over to the officer, security guard and woman and begins yelling.
"Let her f---ing go! Let her f---ing go! Let her f---ing go! Let her f---ing go!" Peterson is heard saying to the officer and security guard.
You can hear someone say "stop" several times. Peterson appears to be trying to use both of her arms to get the officer and security guard away from the woman. What happens next is unclear on video. The camera becomes grainy and shakes around, and a few seconds later, Peterson is on the ground with the officer placing her in handcuffs.
During the altercation, someone in the crowd of people yells out, "That's a cop! That's a cop!"
Atlanta Police said this is when Peterson allegedly hit the officer. A portion of the video is provided below.
The video then jumps ahead to Peterson outside of the officer's patrol vehicle. Peterson says, "I didn't punch s---." The officer then says, "You punched me. You punched me."
After getting Peterson inside of the patrol vehicle, the officer tries to ask for her identification. Peterson says that the officer "doesn't need identification" and to "take me where you need to take me." The officer then repeats himself several times, saying he can't take her anywhere until she provides him with identification and a date of birth.
Here's a short clip of that moment.
Back at the precinct, the officer is still trying to get Peterson's identification. He asks her what her first and last name is.
"You can Google me and find me anywhere in America," Peterson says, continuing to refuse to give her name to the officer.
As previously mentioned, 11Alive is still reviewing the two-hour video that APD released.
What Peterson's attorney says
Before the bodycam video was released, Peterson's attorney, Marvin Arrington Jr. held a news conference earlier in the day. He said the arrest and charges weren't justified because Peterson was trying to help a woman who was being attacked by a man.
The woman, Alexandria Love, broke out in tears as she described what happened and the moments when Peterson swooped in to help.
"He viciously attacked me, fist force punched me in my face, and she was the only one that helped me," Love said.
Love told reporters on Friday that she believes Peterson accidentally hit the officer, mistaking the officer as her attacker. Peterson did not speak during the news conference.
"The judge did nothing more than try to help. The fiancé of the judge's friend and another person are all eyewitnesses that will confirm what both the young lady who was being assaulted said and what her friend said, that the judge had nothing to do and they let the young man who was assaulting the lady go" Arrington Jr. said.
He added that all charges should be dropped.