The Sandy Springs Police Department cited a former mayoral candidate and two-time runner-up, Dontaye Carter, for violating public assembly and protest permit ordinances during a “No Kings” rally on Saturday, Oct. 17.
Sandy Springs’ city code regulates public gatherings and forbids obstructing access to any public or private building. According to the city’s Oct. 21 statement, officers issued Carter a citation for violating city code after demonstrators refused requests to relocate.
Carter said his group received a permit the day before the rally, but never received any documentation from the city outlining where they were allowed to gather and protest.
“We stood on a public sidewalk, blocked no one, and never disrupted the farmers’ market,” Carter said. “Yet, I received two citations for peacefully exercising our First Amendment rights.”
City cites permit violation
The officer who wrote Carter’s citation classified the city ordinance infraction as “violation of public assembly/protest permit.”
A Sandy Springs police officer wrote that roughly 125 people gathered from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the northwest corner of Roswell Road (SR 9) and Johnson Ferry, as well as the southwest corner of Roswell and Mount Vernon Highway.
According to the city’s Oct. 21 statement, information provided with the permit states that signs cannot be placed or held in the right-of-way of Roswell Road (SR 9).
“Like all public assemblies at City Springs, the approval specified that the assembly needed to be convened in the South Lot for the safety of the applicant, participants, and public,” the statement said. “In the last two years, we have issued 34 public assembly permits for City Springs and have received no other complaints on the requirements.”
Carter challenges city narrative
In an Oct. 22 statement, Carter wrote that “the city’s account leaves out facts that matter.” He even disputes the number of people at the “No Kings” protest, citing more than 400 attendees.
“We moved our table and sign-up sheets into the designated area and spoke with participants about relocating,” he wrote. “Participants asserted their First Amendment right to remain on the public sidewalk.”
Carter also said the documentation outlining the permit restrictions on location was not directly sent to a group of organizers.
Carter wrote that while his name appears on the permit, it does not mean that he refused to relocate. He also shared a photo showing him and two organizers inside the designated area.
“The city says the map was available,” Carter wrote. “We said it was never emailed. Those distinctions matter — especially when the city is using its account to justify citing someone.”
Fights over political speech
Carter first drew attention to the citations for violating local public assembly and permit ordinances on his Facebook page.
Even though Carter acknowledges that some protesters remained on the sidewalk at the Roswell Road intersection, he said, “No permit was required for that peaceful, unobstructed sidewalk demonstration.”
“More than 400 people showed up to exercise their constitutional rights,” he wrote on Oct. 22. “Their rights deserve protection. The public deserves the complete account.”
In an Oct. 19 post, Carter said a city ordinance cannot override First Amendment protections in the U.S. Constitution.
“My ancestor was cited for unlawful assembly in 1828,” he wrote. “Nearly 200 years later, I’m confronting the same fundamental question: Who gets to decide when we can peacefully assemble? If the City of Sandy Springs enforces restrictions that echo the spirit of the old Black Codes, I’m prepared to challenge them in Court.”
Sandy Springs rebuttal
The official Oct. 20 Sandy Springs statement cited Chapter 50, Article III of the city’s code of ordinances and claimed staff reached out to Carter when learning about the “No Kings” protest on social media.
“The city recognizes and respects the right of individuals and organizations to engage in peaceful expressive activities on public property,” the statement said. “Mr. Carter applied for the permit on Oct. 15, and city staff expeditiously reviewed and approved the request on Oct. 16 ahead of his event on Oct. 17. Typically, our review process is a minimum of 15 days ahead of gatherings.”
Carter is due in Sandy Springs Municipal Court on Dec. 16 at 9 a.m. He is asking supporters to pack the courtroom at 620 Morgan Falls Road.
