Mableton residents will keep seeing Cobb County police on their streets for at least another year after the two governments signed a new agreement, ending a standoff that left the city without a formal police contract for two weeks.
What’s happening: Cobb County Police will patrol Mableton under a one-year deal that took effect today. The previous agreement expired May 31. The two sides spent weeks stuck over a contract provision that would have sent revenue from Mableton’s local court to Cobb County.
What changed: That provision is gone. Under the new deal, Mableton keeps the money generated by its own municipal court — the local court that handles traffic tickets and city ordinance violations. Ordinance cases will be heard in Mableton’s court rather than sent elsewhere. The contract also changes how seized property is handled, requiring it to go through regional public safety channels rather than directly to Cobb County. New reporting requirements give Mableton more oversight of the police services it is paying for, and liability protections for Mableton taxpayers were strengthened.
What the mayor said: “From the beginning, our goal was never to create conflict,” Mayor Michael Owens said. “Our responsibility was to ensure that Mableton could continue receiving high-quality police services while also protecting the powers and responsibilities granted to this City by the Georgia General Assembly and our Charter.” Owens acknowledged the deal did not resolve everything: “There remain areas where we continue to believe municipal governments should retain greater authority over matters occurring within their own boundaries. However, the final agreement is much stronger than the version originally presented to the City.”
What the county said: “I am pleased that Cobb County and the City of Mableton have reached a final agreement that allows us to continue providing professional law enforcement services to the residents of Mableton,” Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said. “This agreement provides stability for residents and officers while allowing both governments to focus on serving the public.”
What this means for you: Cobb County Police will keep answering calls in Mableton. Anyone with an emergency should call 911. Tonight, city officials will hold a public meeting to answer questions about the agreement and Mableton’s plans for its own police department. The meeting runs from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Riverside EpiCenter, 135 Riverside Parkway. More information is at mableton.gov.
The path forward: The one-year deal is meant to give Mableton time to stand up its own police department. Mayor Owens announced earlier this month the city had begun early work on a Public Safety Division that would include its own law enforcement.
Back in the day, adulthood meant civility. Responsibility. Probably owning a sensible pair of loafers. But lately, it feels like a critical mass of humanity has collectively decided, ‘What if, instead, we didn’t?’
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B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
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