DOUGLAS COUNTY, Ga. — A former Douglas County probate judge who was arrested in June 2024 has filed a lawsuit against the City of Atlanta and the officer who arrested her, seeking $50 million.
Christina Peterson was arrested outside the Red Martini nightclub in Atlanta after an altercation in the parking lot. Most of the charges against her were dismissed in November.
Channel 2 Action News reported on the arrest back in 2024, when police released hours of bodycam footage from the incident.
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The incident started when Peterson reportedly tried to stop a man from attacking another woman at the Red Martini.
Bodycam footage released by the Atlanta Police Department show Peterson shoving an officer, but the former judge said at the time it was an accident.
Peterson’s lawsuit accuses Officer Keith Wadsworth of using excessive force while arresting her and acting “with actual malice and intent to injure.”
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She also accused the city of releasing “false and misleading” arrest narratives and body camera video that portrayed her as having committed violent felony offenses.
“The stigmatizing statements and visual depictions disseminated by the City were false and were published with knowledge of their falsity or with reckless disregard for the truth,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit goes on to call for a jury trial and to be awarded damages in excess of $50 million.
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