The Complaint Room Celebrates First Anniversary

The District Attorney’s Office recently held an open house and press conference commemorating the one-year anniversary of the Fulton County Complaint Room, and it was a tremendous success. The event, held on June 27th, memorialized the launch of the “Pilot Project” of this front-end case screening system one year ago, signaling the implementation of an innovative plan to reform the City of Atlanta/Fulton County criminal justice

system. These reforms called for a new spirit of cooperation among the justice system’s many players as well as the creation of a physical facility known as the Complaint Room, which is “ground zero” for the system’s front-end, case-screening mechanism designed to expedite and streamline the entire arrest-to-final disposition process.

In attendance at the event, which was well covered by local media, were a number of honored guests, including Fulton County Commissioner Bill Edwards, City of Atlanta Police Deputy Chief Shannon, Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Elizabeth Long, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Thelma Wyatt Cummings Moore, Southern Center for Human Rights Director Stephen Bright, Fulton Deputy County Manager Suzanne Alliegro, and many others.

During his remarks, District Attorney Howard presented Deputy County Manager Alliegro with a symbolic check for $5 million, the amount the County stands to save in jail-housing costs alone with the full implementation of the Complaint Room. After several other guests spoke to the capacity crowd in the atrium of the Forsyth Street building, attendees were invited upstairs to the Complaint Room for tours, demonstrations of the system’s

technology, and refreshments.