On Friday, July 12, 2024, FOX 5 Atlanta reported that a scheduled court hearing for former Douglas County judge Christina Peterson was canceled. Peterson had been slated to appear before a judge regarding a battery charge stemming from an arrest at a Buckhead nightclub in June.
The arrest occurred on June 20th outside the Red Martini Restaurant and Lounge in Buckhead. According to police records, an officer working extra security at the venue noticed a disturbance and was attempting to escort a woman off the premises. Peterson allegedly began screaming at the security guard and officer. She also forcibly pushed the officer in the chest twice, despite his attempts to de-escalate the situation.
However, Peterson repeatedly refused to provide her name or identification information to officers, delaying her processing. It was not until after further investigation that law enforcement could confirm her identity. Bodycam footage later released showed Peterson behaving emotionally in the back of a squad car, demanding to be booked in while proclaiming her treatment was “harassment” and “poli-tricks.”
On the day following her arrest, Peterson held a press conference with her lawyer and eyewitnesses who asserted her innocence. They claimed Peterson had intervened to help another woman, Alexandria Love, who had been violently attacked by an unknown man after a dispute in a food truck line. Love and two other witnesses maintained the judge did nothing wrong and had helped Love when no one else would.
Peterson was formally charged with misdemeanor simple battery and felony obstruction. She was scheduled for a preliminary hearing on July 12th but it was canceled, with no new date set yet.
On June 25, 2024, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled Peterson be immediately removed from her position as Douglas County probate judge, barring her from any future judicial office for seven years. The judicial oversight commission found Peterson guilty of “systemic incompetence” in her handling of various cases and administrative duties.
Source: FOX 5 Atlanta
