Biography
Graham Evatt, 20, is an activist from Decatur, Georgia — the only Georgia resident among the six people arrested during the January 21, 2023 protest in Atlanta following the police killing of Manuel "Tortuguita" Paez Terán. Demonstrators vandalized the Atlanta Police Foundation building, smashed windows at a Wells Fargo branch, and set an APD patrol car on fire. Evatt was charged with domestic terrorism, first-degree arson, second-degree criminal damage to property, interference with government property, rioting, unlawful assembly, obstruction of a law enforcement officer, and pedestrian in a roadway. Prosecutors described him as "maybe one of the primary organizers since he is local." Bond of over $355,000 was granted on January 23, 2023; his parents used college savings and home equity to secure his release. He served five days in Fulton County Jail and contracted scabies during his detention. He was never indicted by a Fulton County grand jury and all charges against him were dismissed. In early 2024, he filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the City of Atlanta seeking approximately $1 million in damages for wrongful arrest.
