A metro Atlanta district attorney has dropped charges against 64 defendants after a lingerie-themed party was busted for drugs on New Year’s Eve.
The arrests happened on Cain Drive in Cartersville in the early morning hours of Dec. 31 after alleged reports of shots fired.
Police said that when they arrived, they were met with the smell of marijuana and saw several party-goers trying to escape. Officers and drug task force members ultimately found marijuana, three weapons and individually-wrapped packages of cocaine inside after receiving a search warrant.
Officers ended up arresting everyone inside the home and charged each with possession of less than an ounce of marijuana since it was within reach of them all.
But, on Friday, the district attorney for Bartow County, Rosemary Greene, threw out all but one case finding insufficient evidence to charge 64 out of 65. Those cases have since been dismissed.
Attorney Gerald Griggs, a representative with the NAACP who helped defend the partygoers, described the district attorney’s decision as “thoughtful and effective.”
“We also want to thank the public for voicing their [concerns] in the case,” Griggs said.
He added that the NAACP still intends to investigate this case for “any and all civil rights violations” and “proceed accordingly.”