Atlanta Mayor, Georgia Gov. Talking Mask Lawsuit Settlement

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp are reportedly in discussions for a settlement of the lawsuit he filed challenging the city’s mask mandate that was imposed to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Appearing on NBC’s “The Tonight Show,” Bottoms said the two had and talked about “where we disagree” and she hopes to “figure out a way to agree to disagree without having to play this out in court.”

Kemp filed suit against Bottoms and members of the Atlanta City Council to block coronavirus restrictions and the mask mandate that had been imposed on July 10, saying they were “void and unenforceable.”

The lawsuit was filed in Fulton County Superior Court a day after Kemp signed an order that bans Georgia cities and counties from enforcing mask mandates. 

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Bottoms had earlier said she was prepared for a lengthy legal battle in order to preserve the protective mask mandates, and also guidelines that encouraged restaurants to close their dining rooms and residents to leave home only when necessary.

She is one of 100,000 people in Georgia who have tested positive for coronavirus, she announced July 6.

Bottoms told “Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon that a legal tug-of-war is counterproductive. 

“At the end of the day, we want the same thing,” she said. “We want people to be safe, we want to stop the spread of COVID-19 and it certainly doesn’t help when we’re having to fight one another.”