Attorneys

Andrew Menefee, Founder & Attorney

Andrew Menefee’s civil rights practice focuses on prisoners’ rights and police misconduct. Andrew is admitted to practice in the state of Alabama, Georgia, the Northern District of Georgia, the Middle District of Georgia, and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Andrew is a member of the National Police Accountability Project.

Andrew began his legal career by serving as a judicial intern to the Honorable Myron H. Thompson of the United States District Court in Montgomery, Alabama. Prior to law school he served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Togo. He is a graduate of American University (B.A.) and Emory School of Law (J.D.).

Andrew’s Washington D.C. bar application is pending. Pursuant to D.C. App. R. 49(c)(3), Andrew is authorized to provide legal services in the District of Columbia for the purpose of representing clients before a federal court.

Among his accomplishments, Andrew was lead brief writer or attorney in: 

• Robinson v. Sauls, 46 F.4th 1332 (11th Cir. 2022) (reversing grant of qualified immunity to police officers in excessive force shooting case)

• Bitner v. Buttigieg, 1:21-cv-03153 (D.C.) (denying summary judgment on behalf of high level female executive denied promotion based on her gender)

• Carolyn Jackson-King et al. v. District of Columbia, 2022-ca-000495 B (D.C. Supr. Ct.) (overcoming motion to dismiss in suit alleging public school system’s curriculum and discipline policies discriminated against students of color and created school to prison pipeline)

• Council v. Hamm et al.2:23-cv-658 (M.D. Ala) (filed preliminary injunction on behalf of incarcerated activist facing death threats from correctional officers)

John "Jack" Batson, Of Counsel

John “Jack” Batson has been a civil rights attorney in Augusta, Georgia since 1978, litigating federal civil rights cases, including police misconduct, prison conditions, and employment discrimination at both the trial and appellate level. Jack has argued numerous times before the Georgia Supreme Court and the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Jack has litigated a wide range of civil rights cases, including police and prosecutorial misconduct, wrongful death, and denial of medical care.

Jack maintains his own practice, the Law Office of John P. Batson. He is a member of the National Police Accountability Project. He is admitted to practice in the state of Georgia. He is a graduate of Colorado University, 1973, and Antioch School of Law, 1978.

Martin Menefee, Legal Assistant

Martin Menefee brings over a decade of plaintiff civil rights litigation experience to bear on legal problems. Co-counsel recognize his creative problem solving, thorough research, and deep knowledge of constitutional and employment law. He has been called an expert in § 1983 litigation, especially in the areas of prison conditions and police brutality.

Martin served as judicial intern to the Honorable Myron H. Thompson (M.D. Ala.) and studied prisoners’ rights under the Honorable Sarah Geraghty, (N.D. Ga.). Martin is a graduate of Brown University (B.A.) and Emory School of Law (J.D.). He received an award for best in employment discrimination and labor law in his graduating class. Martin is not a barred attorney.

Among his accomplishments- while working for Jack Batson, Martin made essential contributions in:

• Frederick v. Brown, No. CV 113-176, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 104442 (S.D. Ga. Aug. 10, 2015) (denying motion to dismiss on an excessive force claim and a racially discriminatory arrest claim)

• Gann for Gann v. Montgomery Cty., Texas, No. 4:14-CV-01575, 2016 WL 10807190 (S.D. Tex. Sept. 27, 2016) (denying summary judgment on Monell claim that jail’s inadequate mental health caused suicide attempt)

• Gibbons v. McBride, 124 F. Supp. 3d 1342 (S.D. Ga. 2015) (denying motion to dismiss on claims of false traffic stop, excessive force by taser, First Amendment retaliation, and conspiracy to maliciously prosecute)

• Stewart v. McBride, No. CV 116-021, 2017 WL 2789276 (S.D. Ga. June 27, 2017) (denying police chief's motion to dismiss on failure to supervise in police shooting case)

• Hobbs v. Lee, No. CV 115-010, 2017 WL 4225623 (S.D. Ga. Sept. 22, 2017) (denying summary judgment on police officers’ false traffic stop, search, and excessive force claims)

• Allen v. City of Grovetown, 681 F. App'x 841 (11th Cir. 2017) (affirming Rule 68 interpretation issue allowing for additional recovery in attorney’s fees on jail suicide claim)

• Pearson v. Georgia, 806 F. App’x 940, 949 (11th Cir. 2020) (reversing grant of summary judgment on race and gender discrimination claims for demotion of first female parks and recreation manager for City of Augusta)

• Jones v. Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, 1:17-cv-00105-LAG  (M.D. Ga. March 21, 2019) (denying motion to dismiss on constitutional claims by plaintiff who was arrested and charged with murder for taking misoprostol to induce labor at five and a half months pregnancy; including claims of malicious prosecution, conspiracy and supervisory liability for malicious prosecution)