Geography professor's map shows police training facility supporters don't live nearby

An aerial map of Atlanta's southeastern metro area shows the location of the Old Prison Farm, at right, in a 2017 planning document. The site was slated to be folded into a network of public parks — but a large public safety training center is now poised to take up a chunk of that real estate. (Atlanta City Design)

Local politicians and law enforcement have often said protesters of the police training facility better known as “Cop City” are outsiders — not from Atlanta.

A geographer at Georgia State University decided to look into where supporters of the training facility are located.

Professor Taylor Shelton mapped out where various supporters live and found very few live near the proposed site, with many located outside of Atlanta.