Less than two days after the arrest, the Atlanta Police Department released the body camera footage of Douglas County probate Judge Christina Peterson being taken into custody. Peterson was arrested Thursday following commotion outside of Red Martini Restaurant & Lounge on Peachtree Road Northeast. A spokesperson for APD released this statement Friday: "On June 20th, 2024, at approximately 3:18 a.m., an Atlanta Police officer working an approved extra job at 3179 Peachtree Rd. NE, overheard a commotion nearby and went to investigate. During this time, he noticed security at the location escorting a female out of the venue. While assisting security and attempting to de-escalate the situation, an unidentified female, later identified as 38-year-old Christina Peterson rushed toward the commotion and immediately started screaming at the security guard and the officer. Ms. Peterson then forcibly pushed the officer in the chest and kept swiping his hands away as he attempted to assist the female being escorted out. Ms. Peterson pushed the officer in the chest again and that is when she was subsequently placed into custody. The arresting officer attempted several times to obtain the female suspect's identifying information for processing purposes, however, she refused to cooperate. This caused a delay in the officer transporting her to jail. Upon further investigation, officers were able to later confirm her identity. The officer was able to provide a Fulton County judge with probable cause, and secured arrest warrants for Ms. Peterson for Simple Battery Against a Police Officer and Obstruction of Law Enforcement Officer. Ms. Peterson was transported to the Fulton County Jail for processing and taken into their custody without incident." Peterson's attorney, Marvin Arrington, said he's still sifting through the video. "The cover-up is always worse than the initial mistake," Arrington said. Arrington said he believes the information from Atlanta Police seems to be contradictory. "We already see inconsistencies in the officer's statements," Arrington said. For example, in the body camera footage, you can hear arresting officer Keith Wadsworth saying he was "punched" several times. In the arrest warrant, under oath, Wadsworth said he was struck "with a closed fist." However, the statement says Wadsworth was pushed twice. "We know the information that was provided to the judge is being changed or updated," Arrington said. Arrington said cellphone video proves that his client never assaulted an officer. "There's no punching or hitting of any officers," Arrington said. In the body camera footage, you can see an arm connecting with the officer, but you can't see the hand. So, it's difficult to tell what happened. Arrington said his client is a good Samaritan who was trying to break up a dispute where a man attacked a woman. He said he has reason to believe the commotion happened while the crowd was waiting in line by a food truck, not inside the lounge. He's unsure how the information translated to a woman being kicked out. After Peterson's arrest, she sits handcuffed in a police unit for well over an hour. At times, she hurled profanity at Wadsworth. You can see Peterson refusing to identify herself several times when brought to the city jail to be processed. She was then placed back in the unit. At least three officers came outside, appearing to try to reason with Peterson, to no avail. One officer did scan her for fingerprints, but nothing came up. Eventually, she was taken to the Fulton County Jail. She faces battery against a police officer and felony obstruction of law enforcement charges. However, during the body camera video, you hear Peterson initially being told she was being arrested for "disorderly conduct." Arrington said he believes there's more footage that will bring Peterson justice. "We're asking anyone that was out there that night that may have taken a video to send it to us so that we can make sure that we have all of the information as we go forward," Arrington said. He also said there should be enough evidence to get the charges dismissed. "We look forward to the day of these charges being dropped and my client being exonerated," Arrington said. Arrington said he wrote a spoliation letter to Red Martini to preserve all evidence. Peterson has been released on a $5,000 bond and ordered not to contact law enforcement and to stay away from Red Martini. #christinapeterson #DouglasCounty #bodycam

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