Back in September the same Georgia grand jury that had previously indicted Donald Trump on RICO charges also indicted 61 protesters, many of whom were associated with Defend the Atlanta Forest.

A total of 61 protesters have been charged with violating the state’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations act. Some face additional charges of domestic terrorism, arson and money laundering. Most are not from Georgia.

“Our job is to enforce the laws of this state. As you can tell in this indictment, this is about violent acts plain and simple,” Attorney General Chris Carr said in a press conference announcing the indictment.

The indictment mainly focuses on the Defend the Atlanta Forest group, describing it as an Atlanta-based organization that prosecutors say is an “anti-government, anti-police, and anti-corporate extremist organization.”

This week those protesters turned defendants faced a judge for the first time, though a few didn’t show up for various reasons.

Only 4 out of the 61 did not show up for the arraignment on Monday. Abigail Skapyak was a no show and a bench warrant was issued for her arrest; Fredrique Robert-Paul had trouble with the Canadian Border Patrol and was unable to enter the U.S.; Dimitri LeNy is believed to be out of the country; and Victor Puertase is in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The other 58 who appeared in court waived arraignment and the judge said final plea hearings will happen sometime in May or June 2024. Attorneys asked for that much time because of the need to go through 5 terabytes of data related to the case…

The 109-page indictment accuses 61 members of Defend the Atlanta Forest of multiple violent acts from 2020 to early this year.

Note there’s a typo/mistake there. Since four of the 61 people charged were absent that meant 57 appeared in court, not 58. Andy Ngo has photos of the four individuals who missed their court date.

Atlanta Antifa RICO and domestic terrorism suspect Victor Puertas has remained in ICE custody because he is an illegal foreign national in the U.S. https://t.co/V4gJFb7NUE

— Andy Ngô 🏳️‍🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) November 7, 2023

Two more who missed court plus one who showed up.

Atlanta Antifa terror and RICO suspect Ayla Elegla King, of Worchester, Mass., appeared at the arraignment. Her attorney asked the judge to release the names of the grand jury who indicted the 61 violent suspects. This was denied.

Antifa and far-left extremists have often tried… pic.twitter.com/sNLX02Ye1D

— Andy Ngô 🏳️‍🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) November 7, 2023

Any indicted and arraigned persons who hadn’t already been arrested were told to turn themselves in for arrest by the following morning. Meanwhile, a bunch of activists showed up outside to protest the arraignment. It wasn’t a huge turnout as you can see, maybe 3 or 4 dozen people at most.

TODAY: 61 “Cop City” protesters are being arraigned today at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta, GA. Outside the courthouse a rally was held by those wanting to show support to those facing RICO charges inside. More to come on this story on @FOX5Atlanta #atl #news pic.twitter.com/cgEAFsNq7l

— Billy Heath III (@BillyHeathFOX5) November 6, 2023

Supporters of 61 defendants in the Atlanta “Cop City” RICO case gather at the Fulton County Courthouse ahead of the arraignment this morning. I’m on the story. Join us now on ⁦@ATLNewsFirst⁩ . pic.twitter.com/QFJOih3TqR

— Rebekka Schramm (@Rebekka_Schramm) November 6, 2023

The site Truthout which has published some very shoddy coverage of this group in the past, published a story Sunday saying that activists are planning to once again occupy the forest.

In April, as the Atlanta Police Foundation erected high fences with razor wire around the site of the planned Public Safety Training Center dubbed “Cop City,” Atlanta organizer Jaye C. began photographing the construction, poking her camera through the chain link fence, documenting as 33 acres of forest became part of a barren expanse. In March, police chased, tasered and arrested activists on domestic terrorism charges until protesters were finally forced to cede the forest that they had occupied for the better part of two years. The fences went up, and Stop Cop City organizers pivoted. Protest continued at public buildings, neighboring parks, and the homes and businesses of contractors. Activists doubled down on legal challenges to the project and launched a campaign to put Cop City on the ballot. But the actual construction site became impenetrable.

A group of Stop Cop City activists aim to change that, to once again put their bodies on the line to block Cop City, to buy time before the Atlanta Police Foundation can destroy the remaining 50 or so acres of forest.

The new protest is set for this coming weekend, Nov. 10-13. In the lead up to the weekend, organizers spent months traveling the country trying to entice new protesters to join them.

Activists will also be visiting over 70 cities around the continent in an expansive speaking tour, with the goal of preparing hundreds of affinity groups for the action. The tour will provide updates from ground zero, share strategic intelligence on the pivot towards mass action and invite folks to travel to Atlanta in November to #BlockCopCity.

With all of their regular comrades facing serious jail time, I’m not sure what kind of sales pitch will convince a bunch more people to show up for this. This is officially a non-violent protest of course but previous protests have resulted in people from throwing Molotov Cocktails, setting police cars and construction equipment on fire and, in one infamous case, shooting a police officer (the shooter was then killed by officer’s returning fire). Given that the site is surrounded by fencing they can’t really “put their bodies on the line” unless they trespass and break the law again.

All of this is happening because the “Forest Defenders” are out of cards to play. They tried civil disobedience and arson (they are big fans of arson). They tried blocking construction through the zoning board. Then they tried filibustering the Atlanta City Council. Then they tried getting the issue on the ballot. That last effort is still tied up in court and if it ever does come up for a vote they may not win, especially if the site is already partially built.

Having failed at every turn, this weekend is a desperate attempt to bring back the protests and the energy, which again won’t change anything unless things turn violent. I guess we’ll have to wait and see how many more people want to be arrested and face a judge in this case.