Opening this thread, the first thing I was struck by was the very idea of a policeman on-foot. I haven't seen one of those since childhood in Detroit; nowadays they're all mounted everywhere I've been in the US (and I've been to Atlanta).

Reading through however, it seems maybe that wasn't the case.

Obviously the arrest in this case was dicey enough that the judge threw it out. The officer is actually lucky his 'perp' was a Brit - had he been a local, we could expect to read about lawsuits for "unlawful assault under color of authority", "false arrest", kidnap, & false imprisonment against the officer, Atlanta PD & the Hotel - all settled out-of-court for an undisclosed (but tidy) sum.

In these parts (southern California) jay-walking is usually a tacked-on charge (e.g. "You're under arrest for public drunkeness, jay-walking, and littering.") used to quell rowdy tavern patrons.