The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Lawyers, activists back I-85 bridge fire suspect
Supporters say homeless man used as ‘scapegoat.’
Defense attorneys and activists say authorities are using a homeless man as a “scapegoat” to draw attention away from government mistakes that contributed to the collapse of a section of I-85 two weeks ago.
The legal team now includes four prominent attorneys, while a coalition of civil rights activists and advocates for the homeless are coordinating a campaign to protect Basil Eleby, who is being held in the Fulton County Jail on arson and criminal damage to property charges. Authorities blame him for the fire that brought down an elevated section of I-85 just north of where it merges with I-75 to form the Downtown Connector.
The coalition plans to hold a news conference today on the steps of the Fulton County Courthouse.
In a statement released late Wednesday, the coalition said it is “concerned that Mr. Eleby is being used as a ‘scapegoat’ by government officials to avoid public scrutiny and accountability.”
“The Interstate-85 catastrophic fire and subsequent collapse exposed serious management deficiencies,” the statement said. “The coalition will ensure that government officials are held to a high standard of transparency and accountability in this matter.”
Eleby’s legal team includes Tiffany Roberts, Mawuli Davis, Gary Spencer and Lawrence Zimmerman. Attorney Gerald Griggs had initially notified the court that he would also represent Eleby, but his role has shifted to the coalition because of his position as vice president of the Atlanta chapter of the NAACP.
There are 23 individuals or organizations that have announced support for Eleby, who is scheduled to be in court on Tuesday.
According to the charges, Eleby was using drugs when he set fire to a chair stacked on a shopping cart that melted and ignited huge spools of plastic and fiberglass conduit that came to be stored under the elevated highway because of an unfinished project a decade earlier.
The fire got so hot that a section of the road collapsed, throwing the metro area’s already challenging traffic into chaos. The state expects to have the I-85 bridge repaired and reopened to commuters by mid-June.